There was always another way
by The Rouge Captain
Summary: AU. What if Esdeath had stepped in to save Tatsumi? What happens from there? Prepare for a journey across the empire as Tatsumi struggles to figure out Esdeath... But is something more sinister happening behind the scenes?
1. The choice

**Authors notes: Helllooo, this will be the first Fanfiction I've published, and so I'm a little nervous about this. This story is just a little something that I wanted to do before posting my bigger, and hopefully better story here, so I could get some practice and hopefully some advice. umm... yeah that's about it, I hope you enjoy the read and I'd love any constructive criticism you have for me! Without further ado, lets begin!**

 **This story is an AU fic, following the anime storyline up until the second to last episode and so contains heavy spoilers. This is a TatsumixEsdeath story.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, the plotline or anything else from within the Akame Ga Kill Anime. All I own is this story.**

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Blood poured down his face as Tatsumi punched the great teigu, his new, evolved Incursio, pouring its mighty golden strength into his fist, driving with massive amounts of brute force into the armoured giant. He was focused only on taking down the emperors killing machine. Nobody else was going to die because of the monsters that ruled this capital. He'd be damned if another soul perished from the chaos of this war. However, despite his complete focus, he could feel her eyes upon him, and hear wave shouting.

Esdeath watched in astonishment as Tatsumi singlehandedly began to overwhelm the emperor. Honest, who stood at her side, had finally stopped eating as he too watched in amazement. there was a moment of complete still, then a deafening scream came from the huge machine as Tatsumi powered right through the armour and out of the other side. She let her trademark, predatorial grin spread across her face.

That was her mate, defeating the empire, just as he said he would. She knew it was over now, as did the rest of the empire. Honest dropped his food and clutched to her like a frightened baby, whimpering. She threw him off in contempt.

"Don't touch me, you pathetic little worm. we're done, and I finally get to do something that I've always wanted to do to you..." The ex-minister began to sweat as ice crept around him, esdeaths sadistic grin widening in pleasure at the fear on his face.

Then she heard something that made her pause and turn round, her face serious. It was waves faint shout, which she only heard through her heightened senses.

"Tatsumi! Don't, it'll crush you!" Her soulmate was trying to stop the giant teigu from falling on from of the weak below him. Even from where she was she could see the blood pouring from his wounds, and the teigu still falling at an alarming rate. A fear colder than her strongest ice spiked her heart.

The fierce warrior, who bent to nobody, for once knew the bitter taste of _fear._ Glancing at the crumpled ball that used to be her superior (in terms of rank, of course) she spoke, loudly. "Enjoy, kitty. Do hurt him a lot." Then she leapt into the air. Leone revealed herself from behind a roof, her wide grin making the minister stand and back away. The lioness cracked her knuckles ominously. For perhaps the first time in years, the minister ran. ( **I know right! xD)**

Esdeath, away from anyone else, let the fear spill onto her face. The teigu was speeding up in its fall, and a scream of agony could be heard underneath it, one that caused her emotions to run wild. Ice spiked up from underneath where she stepped, before she launched foreward, pushing her body to the limits. Tatsumi was resilient, but being crushed wasn't something he could survive. she shot through the air, faster than a shot from pumpkin, and much, much more deadly.

A scream of horror tore from her lips as Esdeath realised she wasn't going to be in time. Her rage overflowed as she looked to the great teigu. Instantly, as if her teigu was afraid, or sensed her urgency, two huge pillars of ice shot up from the ground, and impaled the huge machine. "NNNNNNAAAHHHHHHHH!" Esdeath screamed, blood trickling from her nose as she strained. the ice grew even faster, before finally lifting the huge teigu into the air, above the houses. A crumpled ball that she wanted to call her lover fell from it. his wings had already snapped, but this time she made it.

The ice demon caught her Tatsumi, and his Incursio gave out, leaving just the man she loved. Blood poured down his face and neck, but he was alive. Esdeath managed to choke back a sob of relief, and she buried her face in his hair. It was still amazingly soft. "Es...death?" she felt a little tug at her uniform.

"Shh, Tatsumi... I'm here, and youre okay." She sniffed. He was astounded. She had actually given up her principles to come and save him.

"You came, but... why?" his voice was soft, weak, and only getting weaker.

"Because not everybody can be as strong as me, can they?" she pulled her face from his locks, and smiled at his look of understanding, getting the hidden meaning behind her words. He raised his shaking fingers, and wiped below her eye. it came away wet.

"Get away from him." A monotonous voice betrayed a hint of anger. Akame.

Tatsumi's eyes, which had been closing steadily, fluttered. He jerked up. "A-Akame!" Esdeath put a finger to his lips, and smiled lovingly

"No, you just rest now. I'll take care of it." a hint of nastiness crept into her voice at the end. Tatsumi shook his head with urgency.

"Don't, please!" Esdeath sighed. If anyone else asked her not to fight the person who was said to have the best chance of beating her, they would have been her warm up.

Carefully, she stood up, still holding her weakened love. "I said get away from him." Akame's nostrils flared.

"Ah, Akame. Are you so heartless that you want me to just leave him on the floor?" Akame twitched her raised katana.

"Fine, give him here then." She switched to a one handed stance. Esdeath smiled sadistically.

"Are you sure? That puts you at a distinct disadvantage. I'll just kill you then take him back."

Akame finally slipped. "Just give me Tatsumi! You don't deserve someone like him, he's mine!" her normally calm red eyes were full of anger.

Esdeath laughed. "Akame, Akame, did nobody teach you not to mix business with pleasure?"

"Akame, killing her takes top priority. Forget Tatsumi, let me deal with that." It was Najenda. Esdeath found herself surrounded. As she turned, she remembered the great teigu was still suspended in the air. Glaring at it with hatred, she focused and it began to ice over.

"Najenda, did you really think that any one of these could kill me? You've gotten more foolish." The great teigu began to splinter and then it finally shattered. The frozen form of the Emperor hit the ground before Night raid. His face was contorted in pain from his last moments as a living being.

"Hand over my man, before he gets more hurt at the sight of your dead body." Najenda lit a cigar. With a twitch of her finger, the cigar froze. The temperature dropped.

"Yours?" Esdeath spat, venom on her tongue. She looked down. Tatsumi had fallen unconscious a few minutes ago, and despite the dried blood on his face, he looked so sweet and cute. She smiled. But they were trying to take him away. Esdeath knew she had to make a choice. Fighting here, or Tatsumi. She couldn't have both. Even she knew that. Her hobby, or her love...

Slowly, Esdeath drew her sword. Everyone tensed. Then she threw it onto the floor. "I will leave here, without killing anyone else." Akame snorted. Najenda looked relieved. "But only if I can take Tatsumi. If you don't agree, I will bury everyone in this city under 50 ft of ice."

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 **How was that? Any advice, PM me or drop me a review, please. Don't worry, it will get longer from here on out, but for about a week this is all I've got for you. Also, I do actually have a rough idea of where to go with this, so never fear. See ya!**


	2. Fight or flight?

**I have returned! I'd like to thank everyone for the great reception and encouragement that this story has had so far, and I hope that this new chapter wont disappoint! Lets get on with the story!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Akame Ga Kill, nor any of its characters, respective content, Etc. All I own is this story.**

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"... If you don't agree, I will bury everyone in this city under 50 ft of ice."

Esdeath had a slight smile on her face, a sadistic one that sent shivers down Najenda's spine, and not from the cold. Before she could reply, Akame snarled."

"I'll kill you first. You were right, holding a limp body does put people at a disadvantage." In a flash of speed, Akame charged. Esdeath's reaction was was almost leisurely. She formed a sword of ice and parried the blow. Her grin widened.

"Sloppy. What, are you worried about hurting MY Tatsumi? You see Akame, this position puts me at no disadvantage. I wield a one handed sword and control a teigu with my mind. I could kill you... so easily." She laughed. Before the furious Akame could strike again, Najenda pulled her back.

"Akame don't be a fool! She's playing mind games with you. Would you really weigh the life of 2 million innocent people equally with your friendship?" Akame tried to shrug Najenda off.

"I'm making sure neither thing is lost." Esdeath watched, amused, as Najenda punched Akame in the face.

"Don't lie to me! Stop being selfish girl, if letting Tatsumi go means we deal with the threat of a monster-" She hissed this at Esdeath, her feelings towards the blue haired general getting the better of her. "Then we need to accept!" Akame's eyes widened. She finally shook away Najenda's metal hand.

"Hagel Sprung!" Esdeath shouted. All eyes turned as a huge ball of ice formed at her finger tips. it was easily bigger that the great teigu. Although she was grinning, her eyes were lit in a dangerous blaze. "Just in case you can't remember it, Najenda, I was never very good at waiting. I should advice you to hurry up with your decision, before I kill you all and take Tatsumi."

Najenda pulled Akame into a quick discussion. Esdeath caught little snippets of what was being said, but not the whole thing. "How can we trust her?"

"Shes many things, but - liar"-

"Im not okay with this- monster- Tatsumi doesn't - with her-"

"Don't be - this is for - country, yes?"

"What about - and us? don't we - something?"

"She - no family - _at least deserves this._ "

Esdeath tried to hide her shock. Her mind spun. Najenda, her old enemy, said she deserves... something? While Esdeath fell into some kind of shocked state, the conversation escalated into argument. Finally, with one final hiss from Najenda, they turned back to Esdeath.

Akame had bridled her aggression and anger, but it was clear from the swirling vortex in her blood red eyes that she wasn't happy about the decision.

Najenda looked very stiff and uncomfortable. Her teeth were gritted and her metal fist was clenched. "Very well, Esdeath, we-" With a hasty glance at Akame, fixed her phrase "- I, accept your offer." Akame didn't lower her sword.

"Well, I thought you might see it my way. How very nice of you, Najenda, Akame." Akame gritted her teeth and at Najenda's command lowered murasame. Her eyes glinted as the blue haired grinned at her. Her grin was brimming with false sincerity, as if mocking the assassin. The huge ball of ice at the tips of her fingers shattered into tiny flakes.

"Listen to me, Esdeath." Akame's voice was calm, but there was a hint of threat in the way she hissed the ends of her words. "If I ever find out that you've hurt him, left him, done anything to him... You'll jump right back to the top of my mission list."

Esdeath looked to her coolly, but it was obvious by her tone that the raven haired assassins implication that she would hurt Tatsumi riled her up. "Well then I shouldn't be on your list anymore then, should I?" Akame knew she had finally made a dent in the bluenettes pride. She pressed the offensive now, trying to regain footing. Akame used the same tactics in their talk as she did in a fight.

"I give it a month." Esdeath seemed unphased by this thought. She brought back her half smile.

"Well then, I guess for a month I can sleep next to Tatsumi with both eyes closed. Not that sleeping next to him after a month will feel any different..." she smirked as Akame furrowed her brow. Before she could retort, Najenda dragged her back away from the dangerous general.

Esdeath brought Tatsumi's brow to her lips and smiled at his face warmly. "Now nobody can separate us..." She was only trying to aggravate Akame a little bit.

It had the desired effect. The raven haired girl stared so hard at Esdeath that Najenda was wondering if she had a new teigu that could make people explode by looking at them. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. Try as she might, Esdeath still stayed where she was, with that smirk of victory pressing against Tatsumi's head.

Even Najenda was losing her temper with Esdeath victory flaunt. "I suggest you leave now, before I change my mind and find out how you like it with only one eye." Her voice was as cold and steely as her replacement arm.

Esdeath, with her smirk still firmly plastered on her face, backed up in a false show of submission. "Alright, alright. I was just sharing a victory hug with _my_ Tatsumi. As interesting as partial blindness sounds, I think that I'll pass up on that one. Its best left to those who are used to it, right?"

Najenda shook outwardly with anger. Esdeath's smile increased in size. It was a sickening sight for the rebels, the smile that they had seen before watching entire towns freeze over.

"I feel I should take my leave now. I wouldn't want to fight a cripple and spoil my image." She leapt up into the air as Najenda lunged, her face red with anger.

"Go to hell, you _bitch_!" The grey haired woman screamed at her arch enemy.

Esdeath turned completely serious. "See you there. I look forward to testing some torture methods on Mephisto." With that she launched off another building and quickly jumped out of sight. Najenda began to cuss furiously, not actually forming sentences, but describing what Esdeath was and what she would do if she caught the woman.

Akame was silent. Staring at the last spot she had seen Tatsumi at. Her hand slowly clenched and unclenched around Murasame. In her mind, she was picturing it. The monster who stole Tatsumi, with her throat slit. At last her face wiped clean of that smirk and replaced with a shocked expression. Tatsumi was running up, hugging her tightly... Akame closed her eyes, savouring the thought.

"Tatsumi... I will find you. And when I do, we will never be apart again."

A terrified scream disrupted her. Flinging her eyes open and drawing herself into an immediate battle stance, from pure reflex alone, Akame looked for the danger. However, it was hard to see beyond the clearing they were in because of the growing shadows. Wait, shadows? It was early morning still! Akame turned to where the sun should be. Instead she saw a huge wall, rising up and blotting out the sun. The whole city was suddenly full of screams as the blue wall grew taller than the highest building.

The ice was so thick that nothing could be seen through it, and it surrounded the whole city. Esdeath was making sure nobody could follow her. Najenda was pale, almost as pale as Esdeath was, although none of the men who wanted to keep their private areas intact said it.

"No,nononono!" Najenda raged, running over to the wall, through the broken gate. She slammed her fist against it, only to hear a metallic ring and have the shockwaves rebound and knock her back. She got right back up and punched it even harder, only for Akame to yank her back this time. The front of the fist had a small dent in one of the knuckles.

"Boss, look." Akame returned to her professional state of mind. Najenda looked in the direction that Akame was pointing to see a figure that looked like an angel slowly and calmly float down towards them, hands up in the air.

"Thousand-mile flight: Mamesta..." Najenda confirmed. Akame raised her sword.

"Greetings Night Raid." Run looked shaky, unlike his normal self. "I understand the cause for concern, Akame, but raising your weapon is unnecessary. There is no longer any Jaegers. We have no captain and only two members. Therefore I am not your enemy, but instead a messenger."

Najenda nodded at Akame to lower the weapon. "I'm listening. What's the message, and it better be good." The raven haired assassin next to her lowered murasame, but did not sheathe the cursed blade.

"My ex-captain, Esdeath, would like me to explain that her intentions are not to trap you within the city, but instead to ensure that she is not followed. The ice will melt in a few days."

Najenda snorted. "And how do you expect me to trust that?"

Run shrugged. "Surely you were told by the member of your group that I fought with that my true intentions were to overthrow the capital from the inside?"

Najenda looked a little sheepish. "True. But why didn't you go with Esdeath?" Run deadpanned.

"Why would I want to? She made it quite clear what would happen if I attempted to follow her too." Najenda shrugged, and the walls finally stopped growing.

Esdeath stood on the outside of the wall. She had a wide grin on her face, despite the blood flowing from her nose. "Just to be sure I'm afraid Najenda..."

She tutted as blood dripped onto her boot. Then, looking to Tatsumi, she gasped. The side of his face was covered in fresh blood. She quickly wiped his face off lovingly. "Nothing will ever part us, dearest Tatsumi..." She leant in, and brushed her lips against his, gently brushing his bangs out of his closed eyes.

"I'll never let you go..." Then, as if remembering where she was, the woman lurched up, eyeing the surroundings suspiciously. She had gone into full hunter mode. They needed to get out of here as fast as possible. With a thrill, Esdeath realised that, for the first time in years she could go where she liked and do as she wanted, without the burden of those little men beneath her. As if invigorated, she bounded away down a path that led to a thick coniferous woods, one she spent much of her time in.

Esdeath was no fool. She knew that they'd come eventually. But by then, Tatsumi and her would be long gone, exploring the other side of the world. Just her and him... One of her dreams was coming true already. When she woke this morning, she thought their time together was at an end. It turns out that it was just beginning.

 **The strings of fate are a delicate thing. One persons decision will re-thread a whole new destiny. We joined these people at the end only to find a new beginning for them, because no matter what happens... There was always another way.**

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 **And there we have it! Another chapter done and out before my deadline of a week too! I once again want to thank everyone who read this, and of course I want to thank everyone who gave such encouraging words to this story! In particular I want to shout out to T.E. Bbz. Initially I was going to only include a few new places, but after reading that review, I think that I can afford to be a bit more daring!**

 **So guys, let me know what you think, and if you have any personal requests of a landscape you want me to do a chapter on, drop me a PM or just review it to me! I will only be accepting the best five for now, so please make it possible for me to write about if you want to see it happen!**

 **That's all for now, so see you in a week or so with another chapter! The deadline for requests will be the day the next chapter gets released!**


	3. Remnants of the old

**Hi everybody, I'm back with another chapter, longer again this time. Thanks for the amazing feedback since the last chapter, including all reviews and all the place suggestions that you gave me! I will be releasing them next chapter, since there aren't enough yet.**

 **Im not going to tell you exactly what's going to happen in these chapters, but be sure that there will be some tough times both physically and emotionally for our protagonists.**

 **As to regards to a certain raven haired assassin, don't be surprised if she doesn't feature here much for a few chapters after this. I have a master plan regarding her timely appearance. But that's enough from me, lets get on with the story already!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Akame Ga Kill, its characters, nor any respective content.**

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Tatsumi stirred, for the first time since he had collapsed and fallen unconscious with Esdeath. His head was resting on something soft and warm, and he felt quite hot. A delicious smell filled his nose, meat cooking. Tatsumi realised where he was with a small smile. He must be back at base, smelling Akame cooking some meat as a victory celebration. Then he heard the flicker of a fire. A hand running through his hair. The assassin frowned. Who was that? Maybe Leone?

"Good evening, Tat~su~mi." That was not the voice of his friends. He sat bolt upright, and immediately collapsed. His aching, raw muscles were stiff from his fight and he cramped up almost immediately. Esdeath stared at him with a knowing smile, as Tatsumi blinked around at his surroundings.

He was lying uncomfortable on the cold hard stone of a cave. It was dank and dark, the only source of light he found was the fire a little ways in front of him. He couldn't see the exit to the cave, making him wonder how deep in they were, but the echoing wind off of the walls told him where it was, or at least the direction it was in. His eyes fell to the person he was alone with. Esdeath. His eyes were wide with dismay, despite his best intention.

She completely misread the dismay in his eyes. "Oh this? This is nothing. But thank you for worrying, my little Tatsumi." She teased him with a light blush on his face. It was an appealing thought to have him worrying about her. It was true though, the normally spotlessly clean uniform was dirty and torn up. She was missing her usual hat too. His eyes lingered over her for slightly too long, before he realised his error and snapped his gaze to the fire, his cheeks flushing with heat.

"Aww, you don't have to get embarrassed looking at me... we're lovers, remember? We hide nothing from each other... After all, I already stripped you down so I could clean you of all that blood." Tatsumi tried to sit up, but contorted in pain then slumped back down.

"You did what!?" his face was heating up even more as he tried to glare at Esdeaths smug look. Her eyes trailed his body, as if imagining it much more bare.

"Oh its not the first time. I've spied on you in the shower, so you don't have to be embarrassed!" she said cheerfully. Tatsumi was alarmed by her lewd grin as he frowned in dismay. Just then a large gust of wind blew into the cave. It made Tatsumi shiver, for he had fallen away from the fire into a wind beaten spot. Esdeath frowned. "Tatsumi, come here and warm up. You'll get cold."

He shrugged. "Even if I wanted to, I couldn't." he was screaming inside. The first woman to ever see him naked had been Esdeath. He shuddered violently as he imagined her stripping his unconscious body with that lewd grin on her face.

"Then i'll move you over here!" She got up and bent down to shift him, only to be snapped at.

"Don't do that!" His face was red, embarrassed. "If I need to move, I will do it myself!" he lied. He was immobile.

She tried again. "I wont spy on you any more! I promise! Just let me move you!" Tatsumi sweatdropped. As usual, she couldn't take a hint. "Tatsumi..." her voice grew annoyed. "You are mine and will do as I say! Now let me move you Tatsumi!"

If there was one thing Tatsumi knew, an annoyed Esdeath was not a good thing to have on his plate. He had forgotten who he was talking to, the woman who could go from loving to sadistic so quickly that they often merged into one.

He quickly tried to soften her up a little. "No." He pouted, trying his best to act innocent and cute. At once a light blush fell over her face with a wide grin. Tatsumi held back a sigh of relief.

"Fine. Stay there. But don't expect me to let you come back over without a little compensation for being so stubborn." He didn't exactly like the sound of that, but was determined to hold his ground. She sat back down at the fire, staring at him, a small, knowing smile on her face. Tatsumi stared back. Neither spoke. Half an hour passed, and Tatsumi began to almost constantly shiver. He was getting seriously cold, thanks to his inability to move. After another ten minutes of him getting colder, the sound of chattering teeth echoed through the cave. Another ten minutes followed and Tatsumi lost all feeling in his feet. Esdeath stared impassively. The fire crackled with its hospitable warmth. Its lure began to tempt the young assassin, his eyes and heart full of longing, but his brain saying no. The warm meat of cooking evil bird made his mouth water as he watched fat drip into the flame.

He closed his eyes. After a moment of hanging longing, the boy finally tipped over the edge and submitted. "Esdeath... Can you move me?" His voice was quiet.

She tried not to laugh happily. "What was that, dear Tatsumi?" Her eyes were full of false innocence. He gritted his teeth.

"Could you please move me back to the fire?" Esdeath let a little chuckle slip out.

"Where by the fire?" He cocked his head, eyes closed.

Tatsumi sighed with defeat. "Next to you..."

"Not quite what I wanted to hear." Her voice was much closer. His eyes snapped open to peer into Esdeath's pale blue orbs. She was crouching over him, and leaned in closer. "Try... on my lap." She teased, her lips grazing his ear, making the boy squeak slightly. She loved eliciting this kind of reaction from him. It was better than the scream of any prisoner, better than the ring of steel and the crunch of bone beneath her.

"Can I please be..." He gulped as she pressed her face into his hair. Every fibre of his being screamed against it, be he finally choked out "On your - lap" He felt her grin into his hair.

"Well, why didn't you say so? Of course." She eagerly, but ever so gently, picked him up, and sat down by the fire. She adjusted him back to his original position, head in her lap. He refused to admit to himself that it felt nice. Of course, it would have felt nice if he had his head in any woman's lap. Definitely. The young assassin felt his cheeks heat up as he looked up at her. Her blue orbs were full of love and her hands gently wove through his hair.

After a moment, Tatsumi finally plucked up the courage to ask the question he was dying to know. "Esdeath... why am I here? Why are we here? And where exactly is here?" He couldn't help but dread the answer.

"Tatsumi... its not what you think. Nobody died, I didn't kill anyone to have you. That would have hurt your feelings." She refrained from adding that she would have done so if necessary. "No, I was simply given you in exchange for leaving the capital peacefully. Najenda didn't seem to care much." The blue haired woman prayed that he would not ask about Akame. "As for where we are? Currently we are in a cave on the far side of Fake Mountain."

Tatsumi felt his heart sink. The Boss had just... given him up? Was he just a tool to her all along? The young assassin felt moisture in his eyes. He had known, in his heart that truly he had never been a part of Night Raid. It was just a lie. Esdeath stared at his face. Watching small tears bead up in his eyes. Gently, ever so gently, she brought him up to her height, and smudged away his tears.

"Shhh... It's okay. I'm here... I will never give you up..." Another small bead of anguish rolled down his cheek as Tatsumi choked back sobs. His whole life for the past 6 months, all a lie. He felt weak, and fragile. No matter how hard the young assassin tried to believe that what Esdeath had said was a lie, he couldn't. If it wasn't true, then he wouldn't be here. For once, he allowed himself to sink into the comfort Esdeath was trying to provide. For once, he didn't fight as she eagerly pressed her lips onto his face.

After all, as far as he knew she was the only person who truly cared about him left in this world.

* * *

 **The capital**

A Metallic fist cracked a table as it slammed onto it. "What do you mean there is nobody willing to try and dig under this freaking wall!?" Najenda was furious.

In the old throne room of the palace, Najenda sat at a large, round stone table with all of the current teigu users, all the rebel leaders and all of the previous politicians who had sided with the rebellion. Also present was the path of peace leader. They all looked sheepish.

"We're stuck here like caged animals, while that monster who's killed tens of thousands of people runs off with the man who ended this war with his own fist! And here we are sitting and leaving her to it!" Najenda swore, making all the politicians jump. Akame stood up. Her eyes had not lost their spark since the wall had first been conjured up.

"I agree with the boss. We cant let her get away with what she's done." Another teigu user sneered. He was fairly new to the teigu he owned, Military Music Dream: Scream. His voice was soft, but rang with a tone that left a bitter taste on the tongue. He was in his late 20's, but looked quite boyish with soft brown eyes and a thick mop of black hair that swept into his eyes.

"It figures that night raid would want to save one of their own, despite the cost." Najenda seethed at the boy.

"Whats your name boy?" He stood to face her.

"Garrison, ma'am. Garrison West." Eyes rolled at the irony of the western accent.

"Well, West, just because you've got the teigu, doesn't mean you're worthy to speak about my men in such ways. You've got scream, huh? Tatsumi splattered the last owner against a wall the second he got Incursio. If I recall, he was a pretty boy too. I guess that's scream's taste, huh?" The boy flushed with anger, but kept quiet.

"Najenda, just because you've been appointed great general, it doesn't mean that you can just insult whoever lies beneath you!" One of the revolutionaries spoke up angrily.

"Actually, it does. As military special division codename Omega Nine, they fall under direct supervision of ex-jaeger Run, and in turn me. I can punish him as and when I see fit." She nodded to the blond haired man sitting in a seat two from her. For the first time since the meeting began an hour ago, the path of peace leader spoke.

"Najenda, please calm down. Anger will get us nowhere. One day you will pay for the rage within your heart." At this Najenda seemed to calm down slightly. Her hand went into her pocket, and she squeezed a pair of red goggles tightly.

"I already have." Her voice was quiet, and movement in the room stopped. Then a large, burly man wielding bulky looking club stood.

"General Najenda." His voice was sharp, demanding attention. She looked to him, grateful for the distraction.

"Yes Captain Hokoro?" He suddenly flashed a cocky grin.

"I know something that will help you calm down, if you know what you mean..." he thrust his hips forward repeatedly. In an instant he was flying across the room, minus a teigu. Everybody watched as he went straight through the wall. Najenda calmly reeled in her fist, dragging a heavy, knobbly club along with it. once the fist had reconnected, she lifted the club and inspected it. Nobody spoke.

"Earth cracker: Bulldoze. Never seen this one up close. General Fianor, find yourself a new captain and a new teigu user." Akame only half listened as Najenda continued to berate and grill the men before her, despite some of them having more command than her. It was Najenda's way of getting them to be more efficient, if only so that they didn't have to listen to her yell anymore.

No, Akame was focused on something else. The boy with scream, West, he was called, ignored Najenda completely. He just sitting there with a small grin as he slowly ran his thumb up and down the flute. The grip on her Katana tightened. Something seemed off about him.

Then she heard something that made her snap her head towards it. There was a slight scratching at the window to the right of Najenda. The window opened a tiny amount. Akame reacted.

The group at the table could only gape as Akame moved from her seat at the table to Najenda's side in the blink of an eye. All movement stopped as a small knife clattered to the floor, bouncing off of her drawn Katana. It appeared to be attached to some kind of chain, and was instantly withdrawn. Nobody moved. Then the window shattered and a brown cloaked figure leapt inside. He was garbed all in shades of brown, wearing a tunic and trousers, with fairly long boots. His cloak was light brown. On his head sat Omnipotent five sights: Spectator.

"Ah, the famous Akame. Did you have to get in the way of my kill?" His eyes were a striking green, a massive contrast from the brown garb and black hair.

"Target acquired." She crouched low, then as the man leapt at her, throwing his knives, she sprang.

 **Old habits are hard to break. As the new tale unfolds, the remnants of a previous path continue to linger. It matters not where this tale leads, nor what we encounter along it. The only thing that truly matters is that we know: There was always another way.**

* * *

 **IMPORTANT NOTICE**

Yes i'm a tease, but something came up and my internet will be down for god knows how long, so it was this or nothing. Trust me, I wanted a 10,000 word chapter too, but I don't have the time anymore. As always, read and review any good place ideas or constructive criticism you might have for me! Please guys, don't be afraid to make a suggestion! Even if you think its not great, im sure that together we can make it awesome! As for my OC teigu, don't worry its not a main teigu, we might see it once or twice more where its abilities will be revealed. As for the chain knives, they aren't a teigu. Thanks again for all the support and see you all in an unknown amount of time!


	4. Truth to light

**So its been a while, but here I am again! This chapter took me a while, because I wanted to make it extra long to make up for my absence. Sadly, not as many people gave suggestions as I would have liked. I have only received two of the desired five, and so, in no particular order, here they are:**

 **1) The Frozen North- What A great idea! Thank you, Animecrazy180! I'm really excited to work this into the story, and I assure you it will happen within the next few chapters!**

 **2) The west- now this is going to be good. I don't want to spoil anything, but Tatsumi might not enjoy this trip as much as Esdeath will. Thank you T.E. Bbz!**

 **I Myself have a few places for them to go before ultimately setting the scene for a large portion of the story.**

 **I noticed that I made it look as if the new empire was taking a back seat while Tatsumi was priority, while this is a nice thought, no. Najenda was meant to bring it up in the passing, but because I rushed the chapter, we saw none of that. Anyway, enough of me rambling on is enough. On with the story!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Akame Ga Kill, any of its characters or its respective content.**

* * *

He was fast, she gave him that. Akame's mind rushed to figure out his next move as the cloaked man threw his chained knife at her. She deflected it up with Murasame, then had a thought. She quickly twirled her deadly katana, and wrapped the blade around the chain. The man laughed. "Have you forgotten, Akame? I wield the power of spectator! That move simply leaves you defenceless while I have planned ahead! Take this!"

He flicked his wrist and Murasame was ripped from Akame's grasp. The other teigu users stood to assist the now weaponless assassin, but Najenda motioned for them to be seated with a flick of her wrist. She knew Akame could handle this guy. It would be some good practice. Akame simply observed him. The man was right, she had forgotten he wielded Spectator. With a sigh, she lowered her head, clearing her mind. A snarl found its way onto his lips. Akame ignored it as he drew her blade away, letting herself sink into something more... primal. Less thought, more instinct. And much, much more vicious.

He couldn't read her thoughts for some reason. The man shook his head, trying to gain a better connection somehow, but it was no use. He decided to change tactics. "Nice try! I can still use spectator to read your movements-oof!" He was knocked back as Akame suddenly appeared before him, lashing out with a vicious kick to the stomach.

He spat a mouthful of blood and tried to read where she would strike next, only to find her missing. He whirled round, only for a fist to smash into his nose, effectively breaking it, then felt himself fall as his legs were swept out from underneath. Desperately, he tried to launch a knife, only for it to miss. Akame caught the chain, and yanked up. At the same time her foot came crashing down.

With a loud crunch, the man's arm snapped at an awkward angle. A scream ripped from his mouth and his pupils dilated from the pain. It was no use being able to sense Akame's movement, she was way too fast. It took all of his strength to pull himself up on the chain and launch a punch at the girl. She dodged away, but at least he had some breathing room.

Everyone else was silent with astonishment. Akame was not well known for her brute force, but here was a display worthy of Leone. She stood, tall and proud, a few feet from her victim. His arm twisted, radius sticking out of his elbow in a bloodied, gruesome fashion. He was panting raggedly, eyes wide with pain. For the first time since the fight started, Akame spoke. "When in too much pain, you cant use spectator, can you? You can't focus properly." He trembled in fear.

"Please... I had to do this! I need the money to-" He was silenced with a rapid flurry of kicks, before flying away. "Screw you, bitch!" Blood spattered from his arm and mouth, but it didn't stop him from launching both knives at Akame. She stopped moving with a frown.

"Sloppy." She caught them, and pulled, launching forward in the same movement. The man haggardly was yanked forward, and some of those seated actually turned away as both of Akame's feet planted themselves onto the assassin's face. When they turned back, he was lying on the floor, not moving. Whether he was dead or unconscious, nobody knew.

Najenda had a disapproving frown on her face as Akame left the body where it was, gently sheathed her katana, then sat back down, but not before wiping her bloody knuckles on a tissue. "Continue." Was the only word she said. Najenda cleared her throat, then began to speak.

"Moving on, we have much to discuss about the development of the new empire. I had some plans for..."

* * *

"Tat~su~mi..." A voice cooed gently, penetrating the peace of his slumber. Tatsumi felt a hand run through his hair, and grunted, turning his head to bury his face into his pillow. He didn't want to wake up yet. Oh wait, he didn't have a pillow. "Ooh. Feeling a little frisky this morning?" He bolted upright, bright red. Esdeath was smirking at him. "If you wanted to get closer, all you had to do was ask..." She touched her hand to her breast/the place Tatsumi had buried his face.

"No nonono! It wasn't like that at all-mmpph!" He was silenced by a hand pushing him back down onto the 'pillow' Esdeath giggled as his arms flailed round, panicking.

"Shhh... it looks as though youre a lot better now. You can move, which is a start. Here, have something to eat." She released him, a little hesitantly, only to giggle again at his tomato red face. She turned to the now dwindling fire, and Tatsumi finally saw what he had smelled last night. A large evil bird sat skewered and roasted. "I might have to get another. Ive already eaten two myself." Tatsumi turned in disbelief. To his astonishment, there were two completely bare skeletons to the right of them. Then he realised something that made him very uncomfortable. He was actually... on her. As in, on her lap. She smiled.

"Have some." She gestured once more to the evil bird. He tried to remove himself from her lap, only to find her hands keeping him in place. A wide smile reached her lips. " _Have some._ " She was obviously not going to let him move.

He awkwardly reached out for the meat, and brought it to him. He pulled off a wing, and bit into it. Eyes widened. It tasted amazing! He quickly wolfed it down, tossed the bone then grabbed the other. Suddenly he slowed down. Blushing slightly.

Esdeath was watching him eat, eyes not moving away as he looked down, embarrassed.

"What?" The brown haired assassin asked.

"Nothing, just carry on." When he didn't, she snatched the meat away. "If you don't, I'll just have to feed you." At this Tatsumi hurriedly took it back and bit onto the wing hungrily.

Tatsumi steadily demolished the evil bird, not realising how hungry he had actually been. It was only at the last wing that he felt full. Esdeath was still watching intently. Without warning, the ice controllers stomach growled. His head turned to hers, and in spite of himself, he grinned. "Hungry?" He offered her the leg.

Blink.

His hand was in her mouth. A single blink and all of that meat was gone. She stared at him. He stared back, pale. Without warning, her tongue ran up his palm and Tatsumi pulled his hand away so fast he nearly toppled over. "Jeez! What is it with girls in the capital eating meat so quickly! You're almost as bad as Akame!" His voice cut off as soon as he said her name.

Akame. A friend he thought he would have for life. One of the only living members of night raid... Tears sprang to his eyes. If they were all there, would he be here with her? Esdeath pulled him in close, only to feel resistance. Droplets fell from Tatsumi's eyes. What was he doing? This woman had caused the death of his friends, and his first girlfriend! Just because Akame had betrayed him didn't mean they would have!

Yet here he was spitting on their memory like they were nothing to him. "Tatsumi... don't worry... you won't be alone. I'll be here... shhh." Esdeath tried to comfort him, yet only finding the boy more immovable. She put more force into the tug. Nothing. His fists were balled up, eyes squeezed shut. Esdeath was getting desperate now.

She ran her palm down his cheek and tried to kiss him, only for him to flinch away, eyes finally open. "Don't you dare! You don't... you don't get to do that! You killed them! All of my friends! I can't be here with you!" He began to try and climb away, and Esdeath was forced to pull him off of her lap and onto the floor, if only to pin him down.

"Your friends betrayed you! Akame betrayed you! I didn't! I'm here when nobody else is!" She said. It worked last night, why not now?

"Maybe if you hadn't killed the others, she wouldn't have! If I hadn't failed, then maybe I might have meant more to her than that!" He screamed. Esdeath tightened her grip.

"Tatsumi-" she was cut off by a kick, and Tatsumi scrambled out from under her, panting hard.

"Leave me alone!" He threatened, ignoring the shooting pain he felt as he tensed his muscles. "You made her not want me!" Tears flowed steadily down his face. He wasn't in any kind of fighting stance, he just looked miserable and broken. Esdeath was eyeing him warily, hands out in front of her, approaching him slowly, as if trying to calm a rampaging animal.

"Tatsumi..." She lunged at him, trying to wrap her arms round him and tackle him down. The boy struggled against her iron grip, flailing his limbs wildly. Try as she might, Esdeath could not pin him down. Suddenly, his knee connected with her stomach and forced the air from her lungs. The Ice wielder gasped and her grip loosened. Another solid hit sent her reeling back.

"It's your fault! It's your fault they didn't want me! I just wanted to be with my friends... But now I can't! Because of you!" He screamed, and punched out. If Esdeath didn't have the reflexes that she did, that would have certainly hit her throat and crushed her windpipe. Instead the punch just cracked into her shoulder.

What could she do? Tatsumi was in so much pain because of her lie. But surely if she told him the truth he would leave? But maybe... maybe that was for the best. Maybe it was better for him to be happy than with her? "Tatsumi..." She relaxed, her eyes tempered with pain. With bowed head and hunched shoulders, she spoke the truth. Tatsumi was stunned.

Then his fist curled with rage. Seconds later it connected with her face. "You _BITCH!_ How dare you!?"

Esdeath couldn't help herself. She began to cry. Tatsumi hated her now. He was right, the little voice in her head that always told her she didn't deserve him was right. "I'm sorry..."

THUD. A right hook.

"I thought that if I told you, you wouldn't hate yourself..."

THUD

"And hate me instead..."

THUD

"Which you have every right to do, because..."

THUd

"Even now, I still hope you'll forgive me..."

THUd

"So carry on hurting me, let it all out..."

THud

"Just know that I'll always love you."

Thud

"Thank you for this..."

Thud

"It lets me know..."

thud

"That you'll never be able to love me..."

thud.

"Or know how much I love you."

No more punches came.

"You can go now." She said quietly.

Tatsumi's knuckle had broken the skin at her cheekbone, and a single droplet of scarlet rolled down her cheek, before mingling with her tears, emotional pain meeting physical, before dripping down from her chin. Tatsumi didn't move. She looked up, to see Tatsumi frozen in place, his fist raised and a look of immense guilt on his face.

"That's not fair. You can't say that and make me feel bad."

Esdeath shuffled away from him slowly. "Just go Tatsumi. Don't make this any harder for me, please."

"Why aren't you trying to catch me or imprison me? Why are you making this difficult?"

A bitter laugh escaped her mouth. "Don't get the wrong idea. Leave before I change my mind and try it." Honestly, she wanted to. She wanted to pin him down and never let go. But she couldn't. Since falling in love, she had decided to try reading romance novels, and knew from them that if you really loved someone, you wanted them to be happy more than yourself. "Go, Tatsumi. go on and be happy."

She curled up in a ball, fighting with herself. "You... you would do that?" No response.

Silence pierced the room. The only sound was a small shuffle as Esdeath turned to look at Tatsumi. His head was bowed down so you couldn't see his eyes. His teeth were clenched and hands balled into fists. "Tatsu-"

CRACK! His fist connected with his own face, and the assassin went down, hard. Esdeath panicked and grabbed him. "What are you doing?" She cried, pinning down his wrists so he couldn't do it again.

His eyes met hers, and Esdeath gasped. His green orbs were fiery and full of regret. "That was me teaching myself a lesson. I just realised something. All this time, whenever I've looked at you, I thought 'monster' or 'demon'. I didn't give myself the chance to see this-" He nodded at her as a gesture "- A girl. An actual person who needs attention and care as much as the next person." Esdeath blushed fiercely.

"Right now, you are the type of person I swore to protect. So I can't just up and leave you alone. Akame has Najenda, she'll be fine. I'm staying here." He watched the girl before him try and stutter out some words. He chuckled a little. "You okay?"

Without warning, Esdeath collapsed into a hug, locking every limb tightly around Tatsumi. He gasped for air as she rolled over and squeezed him, bright blue eyes brimming with happiness. "You will? You mean it?" He managed a nod, before coughing as she pulled him to her even tighter. "Tatsumi... is...mine!" She sang out joyfully.

"Cant... breathe..." She winced and let go. "There is one condition though. You have to stop killing people."

Esdeath frowned. "Not going to happen. It's their fault for being weak." Tatsumi looked annoyed

"It's our duty as those with power to protect the weak!"

"Tatsumi, don't be unreasonable. This is how the world works. I will make you see that."

"I'm not changing for anyone. Don't underestimate me."

"You wont change willingly, but I will make you change, just as I will make you love me." There was a glint in her eyes as they sparked with competition. Esdeath was back to normal. Tatsumi shook his head.

"You are so stubborn. Im going outside to look for water."

Esdeath observed Tatsumi's motions. "No you aren't. Sit back down."

He looked back, frowning. "I already said I wasn't going to leave."

The ice wielder shook her head. "Tatsumi. You are shaking, unsteady and obviously in pain. Just because you can move doesn't mean you should. How you managed to punch me so many times completely astounds me. Sit, I will search for water."

He shrugged her off. "Just because you tell me to, doesn't mean I wont." Annoyance flared up in her eyes. The air went a few degrees colder, and finally Tatsumi realised that Esdeath was back to normal. Still he pushed it. "I'll be back later-" His boots froze to the ground. Ice wrapped itself around his limbs and slowly dragged him back into the cave, against the wall.

"Tatsumi... I will not let you go. I will not lose you again. Stay here." Tatsumi slumped, defeated. The ice around his limbs dissipated. A small sphere of ice appeared above his face. "Open your mouth." He recoiled away from it.

"I said _open,_ Tatsumi. Drink." Tatsumi sighed in relief as he figured out what the ice was for, and gently unclenched his jaw. As he sucked it, the ball warmed up. Cool water ran down his throat and Tatsumi sighed in relief as his dry mouth finally was finally wetted. Esdeath watched with, eyes dark with worry. When the assassin was done, he cleared his throat, his voice much less raspy.

"Okay, that was a pretty good idea, you win."

Esdeath smirked. "How do you think I survive going through deserts?"

Tatsumi suddenly frowns. "Speaking of going places, where are we going Esdeath?"

A fearsome grin lit up her face.

"Wherever I want to. We have no place to be anymore. Finally free again!"

She grabbed Tatsumi to her closely. "You and I can go wherever I choose."

Tatsumi looked awkward at the closeness, and Esdeath smirked and pressed her face into his neck, hot breath tickling his ear.

"But... where?"

Her grin widened and Tatsumi felt teeth graze his ear. "Somewhere I can show you my work, where nobody can disturb us..."

She placed a light kiss on his neck.

"... The North."

 **Opinions change but people never will. Facades crack under the endless sands of time, and reveal what we truly are. We have no set path or future, but we do know... There was always another way.**

* * *

 **And done! WOHOO, I actually managed to finish it! This chapter was intense to write, and getting Esdeath's personality was really freaking difficult. Let me know if I did it right! As always, let me know if you have any ideas, and obviously we're going north, so thanks for that idea! Also,how was the fight scene? I'm unsure of whether its good or not. Sorry for taking so long, I had to get that oneshot done, and a LOT of my time is being sucked away right now, so it might be a few weeks before I update again.**

 **As always, thanks for taking the time to read this, and see you soon!**

 **21/08/15 update: I realised thst I completely forgot to write one of my chapter finishers! I've added one in now.**


	5. Oozing corruption

**A wild update appeared! Thanks for all the amazing feedback and support I got for chapter 4, it really blew my mind! Within just a few hours, I recieved two new chapter ideas! Both of them were excellent! My whole idea with Esdeaths persona is related to whole nosebleeds thing (dw she's not dying or anything). Its just that, how I see it, esdeath's yandere persona seems to crack and show the in love girl she really is. In the anime she acts really bipolar, and that's what I was trying to show.**

 **Yes tatsumi warmed to her fast, and maybe that was a slip up on my part (I've written a couple of unpublished stories prior to this one and I never manage to get the right pace on the transaction. But he seems to be that kind of guy, to me anyway.**

 **He's astonished by the way he acts and feels bad about it. That's how the anime portrays him, I think. Esdeath and him won't start making out randomly even though he hated her two chapters ago. He's just tolerating her for now, nothing more. Giving a chance but being cautious, you know? Like when he first met her.**

 ***Gasps for breath***

 **Jeez, that was a long explanation of what's happening. Get on with the story already, right?**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Akame Ga Kill, it's characters, or any of its respective content.**

* * *

Esdeath looked up at the sky, partially blotted out by the thick flakes of snow falling steadily on the ground. They had been travelling for several days now, and she immensely regretted the decision to do so. Tatsumi was far from ready, he moved at barely half her pace, and was exhausted with pain after about two hours. However she knew that there was no point in turning back. It would be good for him, not only in the sense that it helped reteach him hardship, but also she felt that the further from the capital Tatsumi went, the better it would be for him.

Tatsumi stumbled along, panting as he went. Every step was painful on his still wounded body. Esdeath was determined to make him her equal still, but she knew better than to overdo it. Turning, she rested her hands gently on his shoulders. "Stop, Tatsumi. We can rest here for a moment."

Fire blazed in his eyes. "This is nothing. I've faced far worse cold than this in my village." Esdeath frowned and dropped her bearskin onto the ground, before resting herself down on it. Much to her delight, when she had killed the bears Tatsumi had actually skinned both of them rather efficiently, claiming that it was a skill he had learned in his village.

"Yes, but did you face that cold when you had such serious injuries?" She swept his legs out and Tatsumi fell on her with a yelp. She giggled as he squirmed, but cradled him to her nonetheless. Pulling the other bearskin over the both of them, she smiled happily. "There, this should help warm you up." Her fingers ran up his chest and her face pressed into his neck. Tatsumi deadpanned and tried to squirm away.

"You just wanted a chance to molest me!" He exclaimed, unable to free himself from her suddenly vice-like grip.

"Whatever would I do that for?" Esdeath's voice was brimming with false sincerity, and Tatsumi actually shuddered as she blew on his ear. "My, are you still cold? You know, the closer we are, the faster you'll warm up. Maybe we should get rid of this?" Her fingers slipped under his shirt. Tatsumi went beet red and Esdeath could practically see the steam shooting out of his ears as he caught her wrist and stopped her.

"No, I think we'll be fine as it is." He tried to keep his voice measured, but miserably failed.

A lewd smile found its way onto her lips. "Hnnn, but it will get colder than this you know... We might need to eventually." Tatsumi already had a plan for this.

"Actually, as soon as I'm strong enough to put on Incursio, it'll be fine. I'll be able to adjust to any cold." His voice was a little smug. Esdeath growled in his ear.

"All the more reason to do it now!" Her grip was like a vice as she ran a hand across his chest. Tatsumi writhed away in a panic, and Esdeath laughed. "I couldn't resist that. You're so adorable when you panic." Her voice was light, teasing, but there was a slight undertone of seriousness. Like she was putting on a show. Tatsumi sighed and stopped fighting. Esdeath's eyes widened. Was he letting her...?

"You know, I really don't like it when people pretend to be something they aren't. It's just frustrating, you know? How can you be friends with someone if they don't trust you enough to show who they really are?" He spoke casually, but meaningfully. His voice was cold. Esdeath stiffened.

Before she could reply, they heard the crunch of snow underfoot and Esdeath whipped herself and Tatsumi to their feet. Both crouched into a fighting stance, although Tatsumi had a hard time remaining motionless like her. The crunching footsteps got closer and Esdeath heard Tatsumi draw out Incursio, as quietly as he could. An old man appeared from around a tree.

"Well hello there youngsters! Its pretty cold out, what would you two be doing out in the wild all alone?" His face was wrinkled but he looked fairly strong and fit. "What say you come back to my hut and warm up some, eh? It'll be getting dark soon, why don't you stay the... woah boy, I don't mean no harm." He noticed Tatsumi's blade. Tatsumi looked apologetic as he sheathed Incursio.

"As I was saying, why don't you stay the night? It's not healthy to spend so much time out in the cold." Both Tatsumi and Esdeath laughed at this. The man looked disgruntled.

As Esdeath opened her mouth to decline the offer, Tatsumi beat her to the punch. "If you wouldn't mind, we'd love to." He shot his companion a 'be nice' glance as the man beckoned for them to follow.

The 'Hut' really was something to behold. It was more of a small mansion in truth. Esdeath was wary. "If you don't mind me asking, how did you build this? It's really rather large."

The man chuckled. "I had It built for me. You see, I was, up until a few years ago, just before the reign of the new emperor, a politician in the capital. But I came here to pursue my... hobbies." Esdeath didn't miss the after tone when he said hobbies. "You see, I enjoy hunting. Today hasn't been so bad, you were my biggest catch!" He and Tatsumi chuckled. Esdeath was silent. "I left just as the minister came into power." Both of the teigu users stiffened up. The man carried on, regardless. "In fact, I recognise you from somewhere, missy. Blue eyes and hair... wait... you wouldn't happen to be general Esdeath would you?" He sounded somewhat fearful. But Esdeath was a good actor. She smiled kindly.

"No, I get that reaction a lot. I look similar to her. The only reason I wear this kind of uniform is so people leave me alone. They think that I'm her." The man paused for a second, then, reassured, boomed with laughter.

"You pulled yourself a clever one, son!" He eyed Tatsumi as he said it.

The assassin was more than frantic to clarify as his face went tomato red. It somewhat hurt Esdeath. "Oh no no!" We're not together! I'm just travelling with her." At this the man seemed unexpectedly delighted. He practically glued himself to the brown haired boy. Esdeath only watched with disgust. Tatsumi was oblivious as always.

When the man opened the door, Tatsumi gasped. The place was practically a palace. Esdeath was unimpressed. "I know, for someone living the quite life its rather extravagant, but I guess old habits die hard." Once again, a sick after tone.

For the rest of the night Tatsumi and the old man made small talk over food, while Esdeath remained silent. She glared at the maid who was eyeing up Tatsumi almost constantly. The poor girl practically fled the room as soon as she could. That's right, the old man even had a maid. Somehow. After a few hours, Esdeath rose. "I would like to head to bed now, if you don't mind." Her voice was sour.

"Of course my dear! You can have the master spare room!" The old man was cheery as he stood. Wordlessly, Esdeath followed him from the room, but not before giving Tatsumi a final glare. She would much rather be snuggling to him for warmth under the stars right now. The man tried to make small talk as they went up the stairs.

"So where are you from then?" Esdeath looked at him coldly.

"The eastern mountains."

"Oh, I've heard they're pretty nice! A wealthy area! So how did you come across the young man? Where is he from? How old is he?" A hint of eagerness crept into the guys voice.

"We met at the capital. The rest isn't for me to disclose."

The old man laughed. "Well, I guess I'll have to ask him myself. Here we are!" The room was large, with a king sized bed and an personal bathroom. "If you need anything, just ring that bell! Goodnight!" He turned and let her pass, before shutting the door. His footsteps were rather hurried as they faded down the hallway. Esdeath sat down on the bed. After sleeping on the floor for so long, the bed was far too soft. Besides, she was worried. That man was far too interested in Tatsumi for his own good.

After half an hour of just sitting there, she decided to lie back. Restless, her eyes unreadable. Tatsumi... how could she get him to love her? Would he ever accept her? What if he decided to leave? No. If he decided to leave, she would stop him. He wouldn't soften her heart so much that she was willing to let him go. Never again.

Maybe... maybe if she was just herself with him. Was that the way forward in their relationship? Her mind fell to the north. What would Tatsumi think of her work there? A cruel smile played onto her lips. Would he be stunned into submission? Would he kneel to her and lick her boots like that wretched prince of the north? She couldn't deny that that would be something to enjoy.

But... there was still that voice in her head, the one that had taken over in the cave. What if he hated her for it? What if he spent every waking moment from there onwards trying to escape her? Yes she could make him submit, that wasn't the hard bit. The problem was she would lose part of him. The smile she adored, his cute reactions when she touched him. The little things that made her love him all the more.

Esdeath was pulled from her thoughts by the door opening. She quickly closed her eyes and steadied her breathing pattern. The man gave a grunt of satisfaction, then closed the door again.

Click.

The door locked.

Esdeath sat bolt upright in alarm. Why had he done that? Was Tatsumi okay? That was the final straw. She leapt up and strode over to the door, ready to kick it down. Before she could, there was a quiet knock on the door. A key and a note slid under, and a voice whispered "I'd hurry if I were you." Before fading away. Esdeath tore open the letter. It read _'the master of the house takes children and young adults from the village and tortures them to death after drugging them to sleep. He has plans for the boy you travel with."_

Esdeath's eyes widened in horror. Immediately she snatched up the key and unlocked the door, creeping downstairs. The room the two had been sat in was empty, but Incursio lay on the sofa. The maid appeared and wordlessly pulled on a lamp.

A secret doorway slid upwards and revealed a flight of stairs. A voice could be heard at the bottom. Esdeath shoved away the urge to gag at the stench that hit her. It was the smell of urine and Shit, mixed with old sweat.

The only scent she was used to was the blood, and that didn't make her any more comfortable. She descended the cold stone stairwell as silently as her shadow that flickered in the light of a lamp. Her lip curled in disgust as she took in the sight before her. Bloodied, crude weapons lay discarded around the place carelessly. From the second room she could here the voice much clearer. It was the old man.

"Its been a while since I've had any fun... I'm going to enjoy cutting you open boy. Don't worry, you won't feel a thing. Ever. Again."

A short, manic bout of laughter echoed through the rooms. Esdeath lmmediately flew into action. She leapt across the room, frantic, and knocked down the door with a sharp, resonating crack. Her eyes practically glowed with rage at the sight before her.

The man was paused with a hammer raised in the air directly above Tatsumi's unconscious face. "You. DARE!" The room began to thicken with killing intent and the man went pale with fear, as ice began to climb the walls erratically. He backed away, but esdeath was upon him already, full in her primal rage and fury. With a raise of the hand, ice encased his hand that held the hammer, and, grabbing the hammer for leverage, Esdeath twisted it.

With a sickening crunch and the tear of muscle she pulled the hand clean off, eliciting a shriek of agony from the man. " You dare even touch a hair on his head!" Esdeath grabbed his hand with both of hers and crushed it into shards slowly. The man was desperately trying to stop the blood flow, while howling in agony.

Esdeath grabbed the stump, and concentrated. His muscles began to contract rapidly, and within seconds the whole limb had lost its ability to move. Then the demonic warrior picked up the man by the neck, teeth bared and shaking the helpless man around, before throwing him into a wall. One of his lungs burst from the impact. Gently, esdeath turned to her love interest, ignoring the blood running down her face. She checked him over for wounds, before removing his bonds and shifting him to a more comfortable position, sitting on the floor.

Then, grabbing the wheezing man and ignoring his feeble struggles, she placed him where her tatsumi had been. "Did you know, that the human body can last up to 6 hours with one lung? Don't worry, we have plenty of things to do for 6 hours." Her grin was sadistically malicious. Only tatsumi slept through the screams that filled the house that night.

 **A/N: As much as I wanted to go into loads of detail, I really don't want to have to make this story rated M, so I'm going to leave it at that for now.**

When Tatsumi awoke, his head was throbbing wildly. Someone whispered his name and stroked his cheek. Oh, it was that person. No, he was going back to sleep. He really didn't want to see her right now. Yawning, he shifted and turned away from the voice, shudder as a dot of searing cold touched upon his neck. With a yelp he sat bolt upright, much to Esdeath's amusement.

"As much as I love watching you sleep, its time we left. Come on." Tatsumi just glared at her and slumped back down onto the sofa. "Fine. I'll carry you." Esdeath grabbed him and pulled him up into her arms. He immediately struggled and fought his way out of her grip. With a sleepy glare, he shrugged on his jacket and slung Incursio Diagonally across his shoulder.

"Where's the old man? I want to thank him. I meant too last night but then he broke out some drink... Ugh, remind me never to drink any alcohol again." Esdeath tried to look nonchalant. There were some things downstairs Tatsumi wasn't quite ready to see.

"He left to go hunting already. A drunken Tatsumi who doesn't remember in the morning? Now that _does_ sound fun." A genuine lewd grin stretched across her face.

Tatsumi turned his mouth down into a frown and spun round to leave the room.

"Dad!? I'm back from the capital! Its all gone to shit and Esdeath is missing!"

Esdeath crouched into a fighting stance. Tatsumi gave her a curious glance, and went to see who it was.

The ice controller was dumbfounded by the turn of events. How could that pig of a man even have a lover, let alone a child?

"Who the hell are you?" The voice rang out. Esdeath, without hesitation, skidded down the corridor towards them.

Tatsumi replied friendlily. "Hi. I'm... ahem, I'm Tatsumi. Your Dad's gone hunting."

"Don't fuck with me! He never lets anybody live! What did you do!?" Esdeath rounded the corner to see a fat clown stood there, looking enraged, lunging at Tatsumi.

The boy was still faster than him, despite his injuries, and ducked underneath his chubby fist easily. The clown caught sight of Esdeath and went pale. "Sh-shit... You're... General Esdeath!" He turned to flee, but before Esdeath could even move, A spatter of blood sprayed across the walls and the clown gasped in pain.

Tatsumi had sliced into his back and nearly severed his spine with a single horizontal sweep of his sword. His head was bowed, eyes invisible under his brown locks.

"I remember Run mentioning a clown, a fat one who lived out in the north. He was the one who raped children and killed them for fun... Right, Champ?" A snarl curled onto his lips and Tatsumi grabbed the clown, tossing him outside, his fury increasing his strength two-fold.

The fat clown snarled in a beastly fashion, before pulling from a pouch around his waist his 6 elemental orbs, the teigu Ace solution: Die leaguer.

Esdeath grinned. Finally, a decent fight. It had been far too long.

Quick as lightning, she leapt forward and summoned several, inch thick shards of ice around her, before launching them at her foe. Champ, with surprising agility, quickly hurled forward his Explosion orb and Esdeath had to abandon her shards in favour of a thick wall. The orb hit the wall with a resonating thump, before a massive explosion nearly blew the whole thing apart.

"Ha! Is this really the mighty Esdeath? How on earth did a filthy pig of a woman like you become a general?!" But when the smoke cleared, Esdeath was already gone. He whirled and saw her in the air, ice shard in hand, a vicious smile distorting her pale features. Champ tossed his storm orb, and immediately Esdeath was blown back several hundred yards.

"That's it! Time for you to die!" Esdeath had grown bored of the clown and his antics, and just wanted to move on to the north. "Grauhorn!" She yelled, and several long pillars shot from her outstretched palms and headed towards champ. Surprisingly nimble, he dodged all but one and managed to counter an attack from Tatsumi, who was in considerable pain from his ever recurring wounds.

"Try avoiding this!" With a snap of her fingers a gigantic ball appeared at her fingertip, before coming crashing down towards Champ. "Hagel Sprung!" She snarled, but champ merely tossed his flame orb and incinerated the giant ball quickly. Then he turned to the unsteady Tatsumi, and prepared his ice orb. Like a pro baseball pitcher, he fastballed it right at the assassin. Esdeath sighed and quickly deflected it with her own ice. When it hit another layer of frozen water climbed up her shield.

"Please, if your going to steal my thing, do it well. Try another Hagel Sprung and Grauhorn!" The two respective moves took place almost simultaneously, and Champ had no option but to take an attack. He disappeared in a mass of cold, before there was finally silence. Esdeath felt dizzy all of a sudden. A droplet of blood fell from her nose. Tatsumi cautiously picked his way over to her.

"Alright, what gives. You should have killed him already by now. And why are you bleeding?" Before she could reply, there was a shift in the ice, and the fat clown burst out, looking enraged, battered, and still very much alive. Storm ball in hand, he pitched.

Tatsumi rolled out of the way and Esdeath made a wall, but the effort brought her to her knees. Tatsumi looked alarmed as the storm ball returned to Champ's hand.

"Its over, die!" Champ screamed, tossing his explosive ball. It headed straight for Esdeath, who was struggling to form any more ice. Tatsumi, with horror, realised that his only guide was about to die. Ignoring his screaming muscles, he dived forward, slashing out with his Incursio...

Two perfect halves fell to the ground. Then exploded. Esdeath managed to get out of the way, but the force of it knocked Incursio from Tatsumi's hand. Champ looked stunned as he fingered his flame orb. Then, in a fit of rage, he hurled the flame orb. "BURN FOR THAT, YOU SCUM!" Tatsumi was already prepared. He had a length of ice in hand, and swung.

Champ didn't have time to scream as his own teigu was hit back at him and incinerated him. Tatsumi dropped his makeshift bat. "Batter up..." He weakly mumbled. Esdeath was on her feet, somewhat shakily. Tatsumi momentarily forgot his pain, and marched over to her. "Come on, what was that. He should have died before even tossing one of those balls. What's wrong with you?"

Esdeath tried her best to play it off. "Nothing. I just wanted to see how well you could do."

Tatsumi sighed. She was in denial. "Fine, but I don't see how I'm supposed to trust you if you don't trust me." He looked around for Incursio. She just stared at him as he turned away. Tatsumi was thinking hard. Maybe he could use her infatuation of him to get it out of her? At this rate they would both end up dead. He had to get to the bottom of this. "Alright, I will tell the truth. The old man drugged us both and tied you up. I had to kill him to get you free, alright? I'm still feeling the affects of the drug."

She hoped that partially telling the truth would be good enough. Slowly, Tatsumi turned, horror filling his green orbs. "You killed him? After he took us in?" For a moment he pushed aside the Esdeath's condition.

"He drugged us and planned on torturing you to death!" Esdeath spat. Why wasn't Tatsumi being reasonable about this?

"Prove it." He stared her straight in the eye. It hurt Esdeath that he didn't trust her about this.

"Fine, don't blame me for what you see!" She grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him into the house, to the living room, and down the hidden stairs. There sat the bloodied tools, but she wasn't done. Dragging him through the room, she presented him with the torture table, a look of triumph on her face. Only to realise her mistake.

Tatsumi stared at the bloodied corpse on the table. He could barely recognise the old man, for there was far too much blood for it to have been a clean death. A look of agony and terror were still etched onto his face and his pale, glassy eyes. "Did he really deserve this...?"

"Tatsumi, he-"

The assassin whirled on her. "He drugged us, so you tortured him to death? Even if he did try to torture me, nobody deserves this!"

He waited, demanding an answer. Esdeath stared right on back, believing herself perfectly justified. "Answer me this, Tatsumi. When someone tried to kill a person you love, do you get rid of them painlessly? Or are you so full of anger that you want to hurt them, hurt them enough to show them the pain of what they were trying to do? Tell me, have you never experienced this desire?"

Tatsumi faltered for a moment, but then replied stubbornly. "Nobody deserves thi-" He ducked a large blast of ice. It shattered a door behind him. As he turned back to Esdeath, he found her upon him. Her hands wrapped around him and twisted him around, locking him to her body and propelling them both forward, towards the door. Tatsumi froze in shock.

"Look at _this my love._" Her cold voice hissed in his ear. The assassin stared, shaking. The room must have been twice as big as the rest of the house. The rotten, putrid smell burned at his nose and Tatsumi felt sick. Row upon row upon row of mutilated bodies, strung up like trophies. Their corpses were smashed up brutally, some of them missing limbs and even portions of their heads.

"Now tell me that man didn't deserve this. Did you really want to join these souls?" Esdeath was caught up in her own anger. "Because I will never let that happen. You will never have to worry again, nobody can touch you!" She reared up, eyes burning with passion. "You are _mine._ "

Tatsumi struggled away from her. "Alright, I get it. This is..." He swallowed back the bile in his throat. "Sickening. I thought after all of this time, I might be used to this sort of thing, but... it just shows how corrupt the capital really was." He looked down at the ground, his eyes hidden. "Esdeath... I take back what I said about not being able to kill people."

She looked joyous. "You can kill any sick pigs that do this-" He pointed to a corpse that had been there for so long that there was barely any flesh left on the skeleton, the rest had rotted. "- Any time you want to. I wont stop you." He barely had time to think before Esdeath grabbed him in a bone crushing hug.

"I knew you would understand!" She beamed, all anger dissipated. Esdeath once more returned to her clingy, playful self, and pulled Tatsumi's head between her breasts. If she was honest, this whole torture thing didn't affect her all that much. She had done far, far worse to people in her own dungeons. But that was something Tatsumi didn't need to know.

As she released him with a giggle, Tatsumi grumbled, blushing furiously. As he turned away and saw the corpses again, his face darkened, and he shuddered. "This is no place to be playing. I'm leaving." He tried to slip past her, but Esdeath gently grasped his hand, trying to offer a little comfort. His expression softened for a second, but not long enough for Esdeath to be sure she saw it. Then he looked down and went to the stairs. Esdeath refused to let go of his hand, following him all of the way out.

To her surprise, Tatsumi didn't immediately leave the house. The maid had, overnight, gathered their washed bearskins and left them folded neatly, along with two backpacks with supplies and sleeping bags. The brown haired boy sat down on the sofa, and looked at her expectantly.

"Well? Are you going to tell me the truth now? Why are you so weak?" Esdeath stared at him. "Well you obviously weren't drugged, because I'm managing just fine and I was drugged unconscious. And if you were drugged with the same thing as me, how did you manage to save me? Don't say it was a different drug because I looked at that shelf and there were only knockout drugs there."

He stared back at her. Esdeath grabbed the bags, and prepared to go. Tatsumi didn't budge. Internally, he sighed. Was he going to have to do... that?

"Please tell me." Esdeath looked at him.

"Nothing is wrong, alright? I was strong enough to resist the drugs."

"Esdeath that stuff is imperial made danger beast tranquiliser. It can knock out an S class for a week with about 70 millilitres."

She didn't look at him, just continued checking trough all the supplies and packing the bearskins. "You don't know that, don't lie." Her answer was short and sharp. Tatsumi sighed. It was time.

"Esdeath..." She finally looked back at him, and stopped moving. His eyes were wide and worried, and his expression was like an overdose of cuteness. Esdeath twitched. Then dived on him. Tatsumi panicked as she pinned him to the sofa, her eyes ablaze with hunger. She couldn't help herself. In that instant, she had to have him, consequences be damned. His cute face, noble intention... what would it be like to corrupt him with her own selfish needs? To mould him to her, claim him?

The ice wielder was lost in her own desires, sharply inhaling his woody, musky scent before moving down to capture his lips. When he turned away from her uncomfortably, she instead began to kiss his neck.

"No... don't!" Tatsumi whined, squirming as her hand trailed his chest. He was half acting to get her to talk, and half serious now.

But the teigu user ignored the request, instead opening her mouth to his neck. A small sting at the throat. Finally Tatsumi managed to get a decent hold of her, and shove her off, before darting away so she couldn't immediately grab him again. It was slightly too late though, her teeth had already made a mark, ringing a light purple mark that anybody could see.

Her eyes were wild, a lustful grin plastered to her face. Tatsumi slowly backed away as Esdeath clambered across the sofa towards him. Her fingers were bent into claws and she kept herself low, as if about to spring. Tatsumi was crouched, holding his arms in front of him as if trying to calm her.

"No. Stop it, we need to talk." Tatsumi miserably failed at keeping his voice steady.

"Why not talk later...?" Esdeath purred, beckoning him to her.

"Because we need to sort this out now."

"Hmmm... No." The woman sprang, knocking Tatsumi's arms out of the way and knocking him back onto the coffee table. He writhed, but despite Esdeath's earlier weakness, she was immovable. "Now, lets finish this off..." She went for his throat again.

"WAIT!" He hollered desperately. "Is this really the best place to do this?"

Luckily for the boy, his shout managed to kick Esdeath's more... well, logical wasn't the word for it. Her romantic side into gear. She drew back and thought, oblivious to Tatsumi's squirming.

She thought aloud. "Hmm... not the best place to do this. Not romantic at all. Not all that comfy either. Hmmm..." She thought mentally for a moment, before reluctantly drawing away from her object of desire.

"Thank... you..." Tatsumi gasped, relieved. "Can we just talk about why you seemed so weak earlier? Although that wasn't the case just now..."

He made the face again, praying that Esdeath would have more control over herself this time. A glimmer of lust flickered in her eyes, but mostly her look was just adoring. "You should always make that face. Its so... cute."

He said nothing, just blinking up at her. Esdeath felt her restraints beginning to slip away. He was so adorable, how could she not cave to his desires.

"No... stop it!" She shook her head, but she couldn't help herself from wanting to spill the truth. Leaping away from him, she backed up, unable to stop looking at him. His green gaze followed.

"Please tell me. I'm worried." Tatsumi felt ill. He didn't want to have to do this, but he really did want to survive, and Esdeath currently wasn't going to ensure that.

"Alright, I'll tell you... If we can pick up where we left off later on." Her expression was one of sly content. She had bounced it right back at him.

Tatsumi went to speak, but then hung his head in defeat. "Fine..." He didn't intend to stay to that. He had agreed, yes, but she hadn't left a specific time in the future. He could hold it off indefinitely. He hoped.

Esdeath had him now. She knew that he would submit to her requests to find out what was wrong. It was almost worth telling him.

Another thought made her grin. He was going to all these lengths to try and find the truth... That must mean he actually cared about her! And he had gotten in the way when the clown had tried to kill her!

She made her way to the sofa as Tatsumi pulled himself off of the coffee table, wincing.

"Come sit with me." It wasn't a request. Tatsumi went to sit on the other end of the sofa, but Esdeath wasn't having any of that. "No, here." She gestured to the spot next to her. The assassin sighed. Through gritted teeth, he went to sit next to her... Until her hands adjusted his course and pulled him onto her lap.

Esdeath chuckled as Tatsumi stiffened and gritted his teeth. She pulled him back onto her and rested her head on his shoulder, effectively spooning the smaller boy.

"Come on then. What's the problem with you?" It was Esdeath's turn to tense.

"I- I'm- I can't-"

The green haired boy interrupted. "Yes you can." He suddenly turned to face her, his emerald orbs burning into her blue ones. "Its only me. Nobody else has to know. I want to trust you, Esdeath. Trust me back. I promise nobody else will know."

It was at times like this that Esdeath knew Tatsumi was the only one for her. He was the only person that could make her feel like a teenaged girl again. Even if she wasn't far off it.

The empire's strongest took a deep breath. This would be the first time she had told anyone she had a problem since she became an orphan. Normally if she had a problem she killed it.

"I... My body... its... its physically exhausted." She admitted. Tatsumi looked curious. "I haven't slept since you ran away from me on that island. Not at all." Her voice was quiet. The boy looked stunned. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again.

Esdeath closed her eyes.

"Why?"

Her heart was full of dread. She had avoided this because she knew this question would be asked. It was something she really didn't want to answer.

"Why what?" She weakly joked.

"Why haven't you slept?" Tatsumi's voice was surprisingly gentle.

"I... I can't. When I close my eyes all I see is you. And I worry. I worry that you'll run away again and leave me alone. I worry that you'll never love me, I worry that you'll die and take my heart with you. I worry that I'll hurt you. I worry that you're afraid of me, I worry that you don't like me, I worry that, despite you saying that you would stay with me, you want to be with Akame more."

Silence.

"Do you understand now? It terrifies me. _You_ terrify me. Before you, I was sure of everything, I never once doubted myself. And now I can't stop. It's your fault, and I should hate you. But I _can't_. You... you are everything I want and everything I fear all at the same time."

Tatsumi was looking at the ground. His eyes were hidden by a thick mess of hair and his hands were pressed to his temples. Esdeath swore she heard a small sniff.

In that moment she lost herself completely. Almost violently, she grabbed him close to her, choking him. The girl buried her face in his soft hair, vowing at that moment to never let him out of her sight again. Only when she held him with all her body was she sure of herself and what she was doing. Only now was she the proud, unwavering warrior she had once been.

But it couldn't last. She relaxed, and let his body slip away from her. With a pang she realised that she already missed his smell and warmth. Tatsumi was unresponsive, frozen completely as her words sunk into his head.

"Tatsumi..." He jumped up, eyes ablaze.

"This!" He pointed to her. "This is why I'm staying! This is why you don't need to worry any more!" He went down onto his knees and forcefully turned her head to him. "This girl that I see here is the reason I stay. So be yourself, act how you want, but don't worry about things. As long as you want me here, as long as you agree to my wishes too, I wont go anywhere!" He ended up roaring at her, and Esdeath let a small smile spread onto her face. He really was the only one she would ever love.

They remained staring at each other, Tatsumi confident and assuring, Esdeath becoming more and more happy as she thought about what he said. "Finally, Tatsumi stood up. "So do you want to sleep here or get going?" He didn't really want to stay here, but Esdeath's rest was obviously more crucial to his survival.

She shuddered. "Stay in the house of the man that tried to kill you? No thanks, lets go." Tatsumi nodded, and picked up his bag. Esdeath leaped up off of the sofa as if she had already slept, and slung her own backpack on. "Wait, we should see if the old man had any clothes. You are way too conspicuous like that." It was true. Esdeath was still in her general's attire.

She looked disgruntled, but nodded. Tatsumi sat back down. Less than 5 minutes later, she shouted from upstairs.

"Taaaatttttsssssuuummmiii!" He stood and bolted up the stairs. She wouldn't call for him unless it was urgent. He quickly scanned every room before bursting into hers. She stood there, looking smug.

"What is it?" He demanded, Incursio drawn, looking for the danger.

"What do you think?" She gestured to her outfit, and Tatsumi deadpanned. Her outfit was almost identical, except that her coat was entirely white and her skirt was shorter. Her Shirt was more prominent, covering her neck where the coat left off. He was pretty sure she hadn't really changed anything below her torso.

"Don't you want a thicker coat or something?" Esdeath just stared at him for a second. Then she burst into laughter.

Tatsumi realised his error. "Yeah yeah, alright. I guess you wouldn't, would you?" She stumbled over to him, and picked the boy up in a tight hug.

"Aww, you're so cute. Tatsumi, I love the cold almost as much as I love ice cream! But nowhere near as much as I love..." she put her lips to his ear. "You. Now I do believe you said we could continue later, and there is a rather comfy looking bed here..." In a flash, Tatsumi was hurriedly staggering away.

"You said you wanted to leave here soon! Lets goooooo!"

* * *

It was quite a few hours later before they stopped again. Night had fallen and it was beginning to get much colder. Tatsumi had been shivering for the past half hour or so, whereas Esdeath, true to her words, was perfectly in her element, not even having donned her bearskin. Tatsumi suspected the only reason she had wanted two was so she could snuggle closer to him.

The two exchanged few words along the road, although Esdeath clung to Tatsumi, happy that he didn't shove her away. As much as he wanted to, her words still weighed heavy in his mind.

"Here seems like a good enough place to stop for the night." Esdeath pointed to a wind sheltered rock with an overhang that would protect them from the snow.

Tatsumi grunted his agreement. Both of them were tired. They dropped their bags down by the rock, unfurled their sleeping bags and dug out their bearskins. Tatsumi made a fire while Esdeath prepared soup for the both of them. To his surprise, it looked and smelled delicious. Could Esdeath cook?

When it came to the taste, though, that was obviously not the case. Tatsumi ate a huge mouthful, then froze. "How is it?" Esdeath asked, obviously expecting praise. Instead Tatsumi spat out the entire mouthful. Esdeath looked hurt. "Was it not good?"

Tatsumi panicked at her hurtful expression. "Nonono! It's delicious! Just too hot!" He stammered, sweating bullets at her scrutiny. Then she took his bowl.

"Let me cool it down a bit." She took a spoonful and blew on it, before offering to him. "Open."

"Umm, I can do- ugh!" the spoon was forced into his mouth. The vile taste was even worse when it wasn't burning his tongue. How someone could get onions and tomato to taste so bad Tatsumi would never know. He decided the best way to deal with the problem would be to just down it as fast as possible. Taking the bowl back, he quickly chugged the contents, fighting his gag reflex the whole way. Esdeath watched, pleased.

Then she turned to her own bowl. Without caution, she put the rim to her lips, and drank. She nearly spat it out, the soup tasted so horrible. But if Tatsumi liked it, how bad could it be? She managed about half the bowl before stopping, feeling ill.

She turned to the pale looking assassin, deciding that his skins complexion was down to hunger. Not potential food poisoning. "Here, drink this too." She pushed her bowl into his hands.

Somehow, he paled even more just thinking about it. "Ah... You need to eat too..." He began to sweat even more, looking at the potent mixture. It was like the Capital in a soup, lovely and appealing in looks, but disgusting on the inside. He put the bowl beside her when she refused to take it.

"Nonsense. Tatsumi, you need this more than me, to warm you up at least. I don't feel the cold." He deadpanned at the lame excuse.

When he didn't pick it back up, Esdeath scowled. "Tatsumi, eat it. You liked the first bowl and I'm letting you have mine!"

He turned away, refusing to give in. Esdeath picked up the bowl, sighing. "Fine..."

Tatsumi turned back, sighing with relief... until the rim of the bowl was shoved into his open mouth. "Drink it...!" Esdeath warned, noticing the level of soup not depleting. He stubbornly did not swallow, trying his hardest not gag at the nauseating taste filling his mouth. Esdeath pressed herself closer to him, pushing him up against the tree he leaned on. Her hands pinned on of his arms down before he could resist.

This time, in a much more forceful tone, she uttered a single word. "Drink." Her lips stretched out into a sinister smile. The assassin took one look at her and began to gulp as if his life depended on it. It pretty much did.

After several long seconds of coughing and spluttering, Tatsumi managed to down the bowl, much to Esdeath's satisfaction. He wordlessly turned away from her, a sickly pale colour, trying to focus on keeping the contents of his stomach in place.

However, a munching sound drew his attention and he turned back to see Esdeath eating several sandwiches, packed to the brim with salad and meats. He stared in disbelief.

"Are you telling me... I had to drink _that_ even though we had... those!" He growled, barely believing his eyes. Esdeath looked surprised, and her voice rang with innocence.

"Oh, but I thought you would prefer a warm meal... Here!" She offered him one, but Tatsumi didn't think eating anything currently would sit well. With a very audible "Hmmmh!" He turned away from her in annoyance. Esdeath looked on, smug. She made sure to eat the sandwiches slowly and loudly, trying to contain her laughter to a very low giggle. She couldn't help it, Tatsumi was overly cute when he was sulking.

By the time she was finished, he had still not turned back. The ice wielder got edgy. He shouldn't ignore her for this long. "Tat~suu~miii..." She sang out, trying to attract his attention. The boy didn't move. She tried again, a little louder and less sing-songy. "Tatsumi?"

Nothing. The fire flickered and the light patterns seem to dance on the back of his thick coat. Despite the lack of wind, his hair waved slightly.

Esdeath gave the assassin a prod, before giving him a harder poke in the back. Only then did he respond, by moving away slightly. And if anything was going to piss her off, it was that.

Roughly she grabbed him by the arms, and scooted herself to him, her arms winding around his chest. Tatsumi stiffened, blushing slightly, however he continued to ignore her. Chin resting on his shoulder, she whispered his name, voice dangerously low. "Tatsumi..." It felt as if a cold wind was blowing right into his ear, eliciting a shudder from the boy.

Impatient, she grabbed his cheek and turned his head towards her. A little too rough to be considered compassionate, she nuzzled his hair, trying to get a response. Tatsumi only closed his eyes. He knew it would be good to teach her that she cant always have what she wants.

Frustrated, Esdeath turned him all the way around, before pushing him down onto the floor. His eyes flew open in alarm as she pressed her face to his neck, trying to gain his attention. "Stop it." Her free hand began to roam his chest, and a cold breath shivered down his neck, followed by a sinister chuckle. She would teach him not to ignore her.

He tried to shove her off, only to find her lock around his arm, immovable. "You shouldn't ignore me then..." He squirmed uncomfortably as her tongue trailed his throat, before shoving again, harder. Esdeath lost her balance this time, and Tatsumi managed to worm free before she righted herself.

"I said stop! I'm not a play thing of yours, alright! Don't annoy me then expect me to leap into your arms!"

Esdeath knew that her forceful strategy wasn't going to work. Maybe it was time for a different tactic.

"I'm sorry, I was only trying to play around." She hoped the remorse in her voice didn't sound fake. Tatsumi only turned away, making her brow furrow. "I guess I should have expected this. Sorry." She did her best to sound dejected. The brown haired assassin winced, his mind returning to the conversation from earlier. He turned back, rubbing the back of his head guiltily.

"Alright, alright. I'll let it slide. Lets just go to sleep." He unfurled his sleeping bag from his backpack, and set it down next to the fire. Esdeath blinked, before grabbing hers and laying it close by. Tatsumi looked surprised.

"oh, did you want this side?" He moved round to the other side of the fire, feigning indifference as to what she was trying to do.

"Tatsumi..." She whined, making him sweatdrop. With a sigh, the assassin patted the ground next to him, slightly unwillingly. With a supressed grin, Esdeath moved next to him, before slipping into the thick, fur lined bag. Her sapphire orbs followed the boy as he did the same. Without another word, he rolled away from her.

Esdeath looked annoyed.

*rustle*

She wiggled closer.

*rustle rustle*

And again.

"Esdeath what are you doing?"

Tatsumi's voice rang out in the cold quiet.

"...Huddling for warmth?"

It was getting very dark outside the ring of light that the fire produced, and shadows danced over the rocks, lit up by the flames.

"But you don't get cold." She winced, caught out.

"I wanted to be closer to you, because... You know..." She tried to make herself sound weak.

Tatsumi felt a very familiar, reccurent guilt. "-Fine."

She immediately rolled closer until they were touching, spooning even.

Despite being rather uncomfortable at the close proximity, tatsumi quickly faded into sleep, leaving esdeath alone with her thoughts.

The cold, hideous voice in her head made itself known, like it did every night nowadays.

'he'll never love you...'

'you'll never have him...'

'he'll leave as soon as he can...'

Esdeath began to tremble. It couldn't be true, he promised!

'you think an assassin will keep his word? Fool...'

Not even thinking of his face eased her turmoil. Not when he was so close, so touchable.

'but you won't ever be able to touch him...'

The ice wielded lost it, grabbing the boy to her tightly, nearly crushing him in her grip. Amazingly he stayed in slumber.

The voice cheered.

'Yesssss... Take him, trick him, keep him... Whether he likes it not, take him!'

Its urges were so delisciously tempting...

The fire flickered over her face, and for a second it revealed wild eyes, bared teeth, a demonic grin. Then it was gone, the dying flames shifting.

When Tatsumi awoke in the morning, he was both scared and perplexed as to how he ended up on top of esdesth, completely out of his sleeping bag, instead in hers, with his face resting on he chest. The mangled corpse of a bear didn't explain much either, as Tatsumi stared in suspicion at a blue haired sleeping figure.

 **A beast thought dead, biding its time. The shadows of a lingering pollution still ebb from a rotted nation.**

 **We thought the story was over, yet we know... There was always another way.**

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 **wow I'm glad that's done. Sorry. Its been too long since I last updated, but ive been too darn busy to write! That being said, I'm still trying to find timez this story aint going on haiatus if I can help it. As always, tell me what you think, and let me know if you think you've got what I'm hinting at is wrong with esdeath! (pm me of course. No spoilers please) I've got another story planned for akame ga kill, where esdeath is literally the opposite of this, just to see what I'm best at, but that won't be comeing out until this is finished, however I will write a preview chapter at some stage so I can gouge reactions, so please do keep an eye out for that. I hope everyone enjoyed this, and thanks for taking the time to read my latest chapter!**


	6. A pattern of chaos

**haya guys, I'm back again with another chapter! Sorry for the delay but I'm really tied down right now. I might have to cut updates down to once a month instead of once a fortnight, but that'll only happen if I really need too. I really do appreciate the support I've received for this story, and we are approaching a third to a half of the way through it. To be honest I have about 10 different endings and I'm struggling to pick one. Anyhow...**

 **disclaimer: I don't own akame ga kill, its characters or any respective content. This story is a non profit work.**

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"Nng... Tatsumi why do you have to wriggle about so much? Can't you just lay here?" Esdeath yawned sleepily as Tatsumi fought in vain to try and escape her grip. He grunted and tried to pry her hands away, only for a sharp pain to lance through his core muscles, making him falter and give way, falling back into her soft pillows. Immediately she held him there, listening with delight to the muffled wails of distress. They grew weaker every time she did this, almost as if he was giving in.

A thought that sent shivers of pleasure down her spine. Finally, she released him with a giggle. The poor assassin's face was bright red, and he was panting. "I can't breathe when you do that!" he wailed.

"Ah, you love it really. Now, then, we should really be getting up." She leaned upwards, stretching. Tatsumi recoiled and with a deft slide of the hand Esdeath undid the sleeping bag and Tatsumi fell out onto the cold snow. The fire was obviously out, but the thing that disturbed him most was still the bear carcass.

"Esdeath what happened last night? How the hell did you do this without waking me?" She smiled as he gestured to the bear.

"Hmm? Oh, it tried to sneak up on you. I killed it and decided that it would be better if you and I were closer, for protection." She got up, and began poking around at the embers of the fire with a long stick, trying to find some heat.

"Right. Protection. I can protect myself, thanks." He rolled his eyes at her terrible excuse.

"I'm sure you can..." She shrugged, indifferent. The assassin looked at her. Did she just agree with him? His hands covered his eyes, rubbing them. Was he awake? All of a sudden, something crashed into him, almost instantly knocking the unaware boy down. His hands flew from his eyes and a small "eep!" escaped his lips as the cold snow pressed onto the back of his neck. Esdeath had playfully pinned him in the snow, eyes wide and grinning.

Not maliciously, but instead playful. Tatsumi squirmed as the cold seeped down his back. "W-what are you doing? Get off of me!" She chuckled and let go. He was once again astounded. It was a fairly comical sight, Tatsumi with his jaw dropped, spread out across the cold floor.

"Are you awake now?" She smiled again. "You looked sleepy, so I decided to help wake you up!" Tilting her head, she sat there, as if expecting praise. Neither of them moved for an instant. Esdeath rapidly grew bored of the silence, and decided to bring him back to the real world. frowning, she closed his mouth. It immediately dropped open again.

Tatsumi's mind was blank. His thoughts couldn't comprehend the changes in Esdeath's actions. It was scarier than her normal self. She scowled, and gave him a push. The boy hit white powder again, beginning to stutter "You- but- but - you-". Sighing, Esdeath reached for his shirt. A little ice to the belly would wake him up. Suddenly a thought entered her mind, and she grinned.

Tatsumi felt freezing cold hands touch against his bare skin on the stomach, and he immediately lurched up, crashing right into Esdeath, and unintentionally headbutting her in the nose. The woman fell back, annoyed. Her plan had been to kiss him as he sat up. Damn the awkward height difference. However, Esdeath was as strategic off the field of battle as she was on it. This would work for her too.

"Oww... Tatsumi, that hurt!" She wailed, acting. Really, she hadn't felt anything.

He Looked upset. "Well its your fault for getting in the way! In fact, its your fault for shocking me in the first place!" He looked a little sheepish as he spoke, and guilt was very much present in his eyes. Always the way with him. Guilty for everything he did.

"But I wanted to get you up so we could get going! The sooner we arrive, the sooner we can make a plan of where we go from there!"

Tatsumi opened his mouth to speak, and a glimmer of uncertainty and discomfort briefed his face. Esdeath didn't miss it. She would confront him later, but right now, she had her mind set on other things. "O-Okay. Sorry. Are you alright?" He mumbled, blushing a little. Her heart fluttered before beating a little faster.

"I can't check, it my nose, can you see for me?" She lay back, inviting Tatsumi to climb over her. It made it easier to pin him. However, the boy was far to respectable. He went around, somewhat reluctantly, to inspect her supposedly damaged nose. Her hand still covered it. At the last second he pulled away, putting on a strained chuckle.

"It's not bleeding, I'm sure your fine. Come on, lets go!" Esdeath internally began to boil over in annoyance. But she kept up the façade. Attempting to sit up, she winced, clutching at her nose, hoping to be convincing.

"Ah! Ahh... My nose suddenly flared up! I cant sit up without it hurting!" She looked panicked. Tatsumi was genuinely worried now. Had he actually hurt her? If so, something was very wrong. Suddenly, he got back onto his knees, and crawled back over to her. Without hesitation, he leaned towards her face, gently nudging aside her hand. Esdeath was ecstatic, as she finally lured him close enough. At the last second, she tilted her head and slipped her limbs around his. The brown haired boy looked stunned for yet another time that day as his lips met hers.

Almost by instinct he tried to pull away, but found himself caught in place. Fireworks were going off in Esdeath's mind. His warmth, after so long, was astonishing. Those soft lips pressed firmly to hers made her see stars, and his crisp scent made her mouth water in its delectability. Esdeath was enjoying herself too much to notice his resistance. Hands roughly pressing into her shoulders, straining to escape, were simple gestures of affection in her mind. A knot of hunger welled up in her stomach.

Without even noticing, she began to deepen her kiss, trying to force her way into her 'lovers' mouth. Tatsumi thrashed, feeling her tongue trying to pry its way in. Finally his foot gained a hold in the ground, and he thrusted up and away from her, making the woman lose her grip. A wide, serene grin formed on her lips.

Instead of blushing with embarrassment and annoyance, Tatsumi simply glared and stalked away from her, much to Esdeath's obliviousness. He slung his backpack onto his shoulders, ignoring her dreamy expression, eyes closed. He glowered for a second, before turning to stalk away. His crunching footsteps as he noisily stormed off roused her from the memory of the 'kiss'.

Tatsumi was... Walking away? "hang on a minute, wait for me." He paid no attention.

"Tatsumi! Listen to me!" She rolled efficiently to her feet.

"...No."

Esdeath was in disbelief. Had he just denied her? Annoyance twinged in her thoughts. He didn't have the right to ignore her. "listen hear! I don't care if your suddenly in a bad mood, it gives you no right to talk to me like that! I want you to-" he whirled, face curled into a snarl that managed to actually halt her speech.

"And what about what I want? You don't seem to give a damn about that! Its always about you! Getting what you want is the only thing that matters! I don't know what possessed me to reconsider who I thought you were! I was only lying to myself!" He began to rant, spitting his words with a temper he rarely displayed.

"What are you talking about? I haven't done anything like that, so don't you dare shout at me! All I did was initiate a kiss!" She hissed, growing angry at these false accusations!

"Kiss? That wasn't a kiss! You tricked me, pinned me down and violated me! Open your eyes, this isn't love, its an obsession!"

Esdeaths expression grew dark. Tatsumi continued. "You don't understand and you never will! You can't be with me because you aren't even human! You have no right to do the things that you do and its time I drew the line! Stop whatever game you are playing right now!"

A demonic grin flickered across her face, escaping tatsumi's notice. "No, you don't understand Tatsumi. You are MINE. I have every right to every little bit of you, and not even you can stop me! I _own you. Everything that is you is mine!"_ he stared in fear as she rose, crouched like a hunter, teeth bared.

It was at this moment he knew he was wrong to assume she was better. She was in fact, much worse. As he backed up, it was too late. She lunged, and tatsumi was downed within an instant. Pinning him painfully into the floor, she pressed her face into his hair. "see? See how natural this is my love? We are perfect together, we are meant to be! Its far overdue that I teach you what you are..." Her nail sinks into the skin of his neck and chokes the struggling boy viciously.

His eyes lock with hers, desperation sparring with irrational wildness. As if by luck, this fear in his eyes sparks the side of Esdeath that is still mildly normal. That still wishes and hopes that tatsumi will come willingly. With a gasp, she pulls away.

Tatsumi scrambles back, panting and clutching his throat, terrified. "What was that!" He near screams at her, fearful. Esdeath curses to herself. Weak, pathetic side. Tatsumi was never going to come willingly, why still try? She was delayed for now. But maybe she could repair a little bit of the damage.

She burst into tears, knowing it would soften him up. "I- I don't know! All of a sudden, I felt you were going to leave! I can't stand it, it drives me crazy! Please don't go... Please don't... I don't know what I will do..." Tatsumi shifts uncomfortably. As much as that scared the living Shit out of him, he can't help it.

With a sigh, he sits. Why does he do this to himself? God knows. "Hey, its fine. I've been like that too." The thought of losing a friend for the first time was too much. He knew the feeling and yet all he had done was dismissed her. It was fully his fault.

Esdeath finally began to think with her normal, rational (for her) mindset. There, tatsumi wasnt leaving, everything was fine. "im sorry..." She sniffed. He smiled gently, believing that he understood her.

 _take him now, his guard is back down..._

 _Stupid weakness got in the way again..._

 _Take him!_

"Esdeath?" She looked up, smiling. Soon. Soon he would be hers, one way or another.

"I'm fine. Still tired I guess. Lets move. I want to get there soon." Tatsumi rolled his eyes.

"its all well and good saying you want to be there soon, but where in the north is there? And how long will it take to get 'there'?" She chuckled.

Tatsumi didn't know. Their destination... Her pride and joy, her masterpiece. He would be in such awe with her creation that he would have no choice but to bow to her wishes and her love. Then she could finally grasp her desires, her ambitions would come true. The crushed north. Her victory, yet again.

"you'll see. Its someplace safe, I promise. Now lets go."

The two got up, and esdeath was pleased to see tatsumi obeying her again, like a good lover. He was learning, after all this time. They slung their backpacks up, and Esdeath clung to tatsumi lovingly, refusing to let go. To be honest, she wanted this physical closeness anyway. The only thing she had to fake was the apologetic ruse that kept him from pushing her off. From now on she had to keep in check.

It was no good scaring him off, not until he had nowhere left to run. That's why a frozen over fortress is so handy.

After several hours of smalltalk, hunting and treking, Tatsumi seemed to grow visibly more confused and anticipating. It was when they came to a legitimate path that he gasped.

"No... It can't be true!" He began to tremble. His body pulled away from esdeaths, only for her to follow as he span round. Small droplets fell from his eyes and a huge smile beamed across his frozen lips. Esdeath was alarmed.

"what, what is it? What's the matter?" He turned to her, and the breath in her throat hitched. The ice wielders brain saved the image it saw forever. Tatsumi, face full of joy and eyed wide with excitement. For the first time since they met, all the doubt in his eyes had dissipated, and he spun the woman round happily, laughing.

"what is it?" She giggled happily, euphoric at his joy. It was part of what she loved about him. His joy was so contagious, it made even her cruel side giggle. Sweeping her up into his arms, the boy set off down the path at high speeds, the wind whipping through his hair as his joyful smile beamed ahead.

After a few minutes, he stopped and flung her from his arms, forgetting the tension between them in his excitement. His arms wrapped round her as he tried to drink in the sight of something he had missed so sorely. "Esdeath..." His voice was thick with emotion as she tried to savour the feeling of his body pressing into hers.

Finally she looked up. Her eyes widened. No way... Was this...?

"Welcome to my village."

 **As sanity begins to slip from reach, yet again it seems as though the end is clear. If we lose our minds, we must never lose faith, for... There was always another way.**

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 **I'm finally posting a new chapter! Stuff gets kinda hard with school and a job, I struggle. Its taken me forever to write this much, but I didn't want to let you guys down.**

 **I want to address a few matters. 1) chapters from now on will be horrendously out of schedule, and don't expect that to get fixed anytime soon. I can't help it.**

 **2) this chapter may have looked disjointed and bipolar. That's the point. Esdeath is sinking into a cycle of war with herself, and is trying to hide it from tatsumi, who is still the most gullible, lovable idiot there is. It will improve.**

 **3) I have a question. Do you guys want short, but more regular chapters that will be between 2k to 3k words, or longer chapters that will be 5 to 10k words, but take me a lot longer. Please do let me know, I want to do what you guys want me to do!**

 **A sidenote: shout out to lavaflow222 with their story unhealthy obsession. Awesome person, willing to interact with their readers and have a laugh. If you havent read that story, I urge that you check it out (much better than mine).**

 **As always, please let me know what you think. I will try answering reviews from now on, as long as they give constructive feedback. And yes, all constructive feedback is welcome. Seriously, bring it on. The more you tell me what's good and how I can improve, the faster these are going to come! I mean, the more confident in this that I am, the more encouraged I am to write! Logic!**

 **Well, that'll be all from me. Thanks to everyone who has supported me, we are at 10+k views now! And thanks for taking the time to read this! Bye!**


	7. Not a chapter, but a delayed apology

I was scrolling through fanfiction a few minutes ago, and finally decided to log on for once. Upon checking out my story, you can imagine I was met with some delight! We've reached communities, thousands of reads, over 100 favs!

And so, I have finally had my epiphany. I will not abandon this story. I owe it to you, the fans, the supporters of this story. I wish I could say I had an excuse for leaving things as they were, but I have nothing but the fact that I was busy and never got round to it. But what I can do is give my humblest apology, and promise that another chapter will be in the works soon. This story still has some kick to it.

All requests that were made but don't get added, I will add to a list of requests and turn them into oneshots. I just don't feel that a few of them work with how things are going. Other than that, I have nothing to say, but I'm sorry and I hope for your continued support.


	8. Village of lies

**Its here! After so long, the chapter that took several months to hit the daylight! I made my apology before, and have nothing much to say but thanks for not giving up on me and enjoy! On with the story!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own akame ga kill, its characters or respective property. All I own is this story.**

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 _Burn the village down._

"Kira?"

 _They are distracting him. You deserve every thought that flickers through his head, don't you?_

"Hey, Kira?!"

 _Bury them in ice and crush what he knows!_

Something shifted to her right. She kept her eyes shut.

A voice hissed in her ear, in perfect synchronisation with the other.

"Esdeath, _get_ up _and_ lets _hunt!"_

One voice was warmer and more soothing than the other. Esdeath cracked her eyes open, before smiling at the soft brown haired boy looking down at her anxiously. "Goodmorning to you too Tatsumi" He breathed a sigh of relief and started to move away from her. Quick as lightning, she rolled from the bed, taking him down and landing on him with a neat thump.

He "Oof"ed audibly.

"Aww Tatsumi, did you want to go hunting that badly? Why didnt you go without me?" Even she knew he would have suffered if he had. "Can't bear to be away from me?" She tested the waters for the millionth time in the week that they had been at his village. The villagers had celebrated his return, had sat and listened to his story and even built him his own hut in the week that followed on from their arrival.

The news of Sayo and Leyasu's deaths had been met with silence. Tatsumi forced himself to spin a golden tale of how heroically they had died, all the while clenching Esdeaths hand so hard he almost broke it. The village remained sombre until a few days after the funeral, but Tatsumi felt more at ease when the proper traditions had been followed.

Nobody had really played Esdeath any attention, other than the village elder. But he was convinced that she was a young girl named Kira that Tatsumi had taken a fancy to. The Kira part was the bit that she was unhappy with.

The best part of their arrival was that Tatsumi had been too joyful to know what he was doing. He was delighted enough to kiss her on the cheek at one point. She had enjoyed his touches, but it had left her wanting. Something in her gut. It hungered, thirstly yearning for more. More never came. Esdeath had to gain satisfaction herself but it wasnt the same.

Her eyes bright, she kept him pinned to the floor with ease. The voice still came to her every night, but instead of draining her, it strengthened her. Her limbs flowed with viciously frozen energy, pulsating rhythmically. She kept it hidden. Pretended she was sleeping. This was new power. Power to prove herself to Tatsumi. She was keeping it.

"Not likely. You would have murdered me if I had left without you, Kira."

'More likely murder your friends' was whaat she wanted to say. Her head gave a little hiss of delight.

"Oh come now Tatsumi. Nobody is around. Use my name." Was what came out. Curses.

"Kira, I don't want you to get caught."

Her eyes softened and a small smile wormed onto her face. Maybe it was working?

"They'll throw us out."

She leapt off of him in time to hide her snarl of disgust. The villagers were weak. Why wouldn't Tatsumi see that she was better for him than them? She kicked the door open and stalked angrily out. Why? Why couldn't he see? She was trying so hard for him. She didn't want to force herself. She wanted him to come to her willingly.

"Ah, there you are. Kira, isn't it?" The elder called her as she stepped out. Forcing a neutral expression, she turned to the elder who was over by another hut. The village, much to tatsumi's dismay, had been burned down in autumn after he had left. They had been forced to rebuild small, wooden huts. Tatsumi's was the biggest.

"Yes, elder?" She asked politely, grinding her teeth. Playing weak was sickening.

"Can I ask you to stay behind and help fix this hut today? We lack many tall and skilled craftsmen. Well, none of the tall ones are skilled anyway." She was about to spit a declanation at him, when a soft touch to her hip stayed her tongue.

Tatsumi gently slid a finger down her wrist before entwining their hands. "Kira, please stay and help..." She sighed. One day, he would touch her like this and call her Esdeath. His muss of hair touched her shoulder. She relented. For him.

"Of course I will." Tatsumi smiled, but Esdeath was too irritated to notice. How dare he chose the elder over her? The old man was going to have a slow death.

"Thank you so much... Es." Tatsumi whispered the end part and her foul mood lifted faster than storms set in. She beamed.

"You do listen to me then, Tatsumi..." She smirked, and went to kiss him. She narrowed her eyes in triumph. Surely Tatsumi would have to play along, to not cause suspicions.

He grinned and pulled her close for a tight hug. Her features did a 360, turning into a horrid snarl then back into a little smile as he rubbed her back slowly. Tatsumi knew when he needed to act. Far, far too soon, he let go and stepped back. Her body wanted to lurch to go with him, her stomach knotting painfully. She forced herself to stay. As he turned and ran off to the edge of the village, where he met with two other hunters.

She turned, unable to wipe the small smile from her face. She had no complaints for the elder, despite what had coursed through her mind earlier. Tatsumi was going to be hers. He was going to love her back, finally.

She helped with several of the huts in the end, silently working through what Tatsumi had said or done in her head. It was complex. Half the time he was adorable, submissive and fun, the other half he was trying to throw her off of him. It wasn't until the elder spoke up while working next to her, fixing the logs she placed down together.

"I know who you are." He smiled

She raised an eyebrow, not for a second losing her cool. "Even out here, we have heard of the famous Esdeath. The ice queen."

Esdeath looked puzzled. She didn't let up her cover for a second. Not even her heart beat out of place. She wasn't spoiling her false persona for the bluff of an old man.

"In all my years I never thought the empire would fall. It crossed my dreams frequently, but in other ways, no. But I never even dreamed that I would one day build a hut with the acclaimed Esdeath."

She finally spoke. "I'm from the same tribe has her. She didn't know I survived."

The elder looked at her with a blank expression. "Then why did you carry the uniform of a general with you when you arrived?"

She swore internally.

"I wore it to scare Tatsumi. He thought I was the general the first few times I wore it in the capital."

The elder looked unimpressed. "I am not fooled by your bluff, miss Esdeath. Give this up, and admit to it. How could we harm you anyway? Villagers and peasants like us."

His words struck her. With a throaty laugh of bitter appreciation and confidence, she replied with her vicious smile. "You aren't wrong there, old man." What did it matter? None of them could huft her. Tatsumi was stupid for wanting to keep it secret.

"Naturally, I ask you not to create any boulders of ice here. Other than that, I have no problem with you. Many of the rest are too uninformed to notice." She nodded, still smirking. A baby cried in its bundled of layers at her. She fixed her expression.

"Don't get in my way. I don't need tools to torture people."

The elder was impassive. "You love Tatsumi but think we are taking him?"

She whirled, teeth bared. "I need him. More than anyone else on this planet. I deserve him, I am better for him. Do you understand me, old man! There is nothing in this world that can keep me from him. Nothing. I will have him! _If I have to step over your corpses with him in my arms I will do so."_

She hissed out her last sentence. Blinking, she realized that several villagers were staring with saucer eyes at her. She had stalked down the elder without realizing it, teeth already bared like she was filled with the exhileration of battle.

The elder was paler than her. Pupils dilated in a shot of pure terror. The very wind had whipped up and mingled with her voice, making her hiss like a serpent. Her eyes were sparked, challenging.

"I-I of course give you permission to be with Tatsumi. I don't see why he shouldn't be with you." He stammered, losing his cool for the first time in years. He wasn't this bad, even after the village fire.

Esdeath seemed to embody something else, a monster in flesh, trying to be free. The mister hissed. "I didn't plan to ask permission."

Before a worried villager could grab a blade, one bloodied meat cleaver, Tatsumi burst into the area, carrying one of his comrades. The other was nowhere to be found.

"An ex garrision is on its way!" He yelled, startling everyone. Esdeath rushed to him, attempting to check for wounds but he pushed her aside and ran to the nearest hut.

"Get him a healer, now!" A shiver ran down Esdeaths spine as Tatsumi's voice churned out orders. It was a mystery how such a soft hearted man could be a cold blooded killer and commander should he need it. The drum of marching boots could be heard crunching through the snow.

"Tatsumi... They didn't..." The elder looked horrified.

"We three split up to have better chances of finding beasts. I went alone, while those two went together. By the time I had heard the sound of shouting and gunshots, I was too late. The best I could do was grab Ekiel-" he gestured to the hut "- and run..." His eyes grew cold, anger burning embers in his emerald orbs.

"Master Elder, come with Kira and I." He turned and paced towards the sound of marching, stopping at the edge of the village, back turned.

Esdeath paced over to join him, and put her hand on his shoulder. In a strained tone, she whispered close to his ear.

"Tatsumi, they must be after us. If we don't leave, your friends will be slaughtered!" She fought to keep a straight face. This was exactly what she needed to get him moving again. They couldn't saddle here, this wasn't where she wanted to be.

The village elder arrived at his other side.

"No. They are coming for the village. My village." He bared his teeth and spat out his next few sentences. "Ekiel told them we would provide them with shelter, but not food. I overheard. There was a row, then a small struggle as I made for them. By the time I got there, all I could do was pick up Ekiel. It seems that fate never did like putting me in threes."

His expression grew dark, and Esdeath wrapped am arm around his waist, pulling him close. She wasn't all that bothered for his friends, but if it upset Tatsumi she would deal with it. He sighed into her, putting an arm around her back before straightening up and stepping away as the drum of marching grew louder.

Esdeath gritted her teeth, a tight grimace fleeting into then out of view.

The Garrison came into view. They were led by a hulk of a man, obviously a noble, fattened from the taxes of the poor no doubt. Beside him marched a stocky, dark haired man. His eyes were hidden underneath his mop of hair.

Esdeath slipped out of view as they turned towards the village, knowing she would have a better shot at killing all of the men. It had been a long time since she had spread so much blood, and it sent pulses of anticipation and an almost pleasured sensation rippling through her body. A hungry smile spread on her mouth, like a beast that's cornered its prey.

"Greetings, little one!" The Garrison leader boomed at Tatsumi, thinking him the leader. In essence, he wasn't particularly wrong. "We have come to resupply at your village!" When Tatsumi had rescued Ekiel, he had kept hid hood up. The leader didn't recognise him.

"What is your intent?" The malice in Tatsumi's voice sent chills through the already cold air. The Garrison leader looked suspicious. "

We are scouting for the rebel army, to ensure the continued survival of mighty empire!" The man lied.

"The empire has been overthrown. You were fleeing weren't you?" Tatsumi bowed his head, glaring at the man through his bangs of thick brown hair.

"Ha! Rumors!" The man bluffed. The garrison was silent. They could feel the hate rolling from Tatsumi. Not only were they liars, but traitors, disloyals and scum.

"I was there."

The garrison leader roared and drew his sword, swinging it through the air. Tatsumi didn't flinch. Esdeath watched Tatsumi, biting her lip. Herr he was, facing an entire garrison, refusing to back down. He had come a long way since she had met him. And as he had grown, she only wanted him _more_. Her breath hitched slightly. The sight of Tatsumi, the prospect of bloodshed and fighting... It was getting to her.

"Listen brat! Give us what we want and nobody dies!"

Tatsumi shrugged. "What do you want?"

The garrison leader laughed, and it was echoed in his men. Tatsumi estimated there were 60-70 present. Not quite a full garrison.

"Not too much. Just shelter, all of your money, food water and women. So in theory... We want this town, minus the men!" The laughter rang out again.

"No."

There was silence.

"Pardon? Stupid brat, how are you planning on stopping me?"

He reached to grab Tatsumi by the throat.

His hand touched thin air. The brunette reappeared next to him, grabbed the arm with one hand and twisted. The hulking, 6 foot man flipped backwards over a metre of snow before landing with a broken arm. There was silence, then a synchronised ringing of steel as all the soldiers drew their swords in time. The leader struggled up as Tatsumi looked on, impasse.

"Kill him!" The dark haired man who had yet to reveal himself flicked his head up, causing his hair to lift. There sat the gleaming eye shape that Tatsumi had first battled and lost to. The teigu specter sat on his brow. With a snarl, Incursio was whipped from its sheath.

 _ **No matter where we go or who we become, the past always finds a way to catch us. Run all you like, but there will be no solace once you realize... There was always another way.**_

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 **AN: There! Before we go through the usual, gotta explain some stuff. The chapter was indeed quite scruffy and almost contradictory in itself. This chapter was written to mirror esdeaths thought pattern right now. The Esdeath I have painted here is one free from boundaries. She has no loyalty to tie her to an empire, so she won't kill Tatsumi. There is no power left for her to fight for. Instead she has to struggle for him. I really hope you guys are picking up my low key vibes here, this is quite tricky xD**

 **Some of you may have come to notice that recently the summary changed, and that there will be no TatsumixAkame in this story anymore. When I wrote up the draft of this it was basically non stop petty squabbling and tears over feelings, and it was dull. So to cut out the sickening one sided love triangle, for all purposes akame will not recieve any romantic consideration from Tatsumi anymore. My sincerest apologies if I got anyone's hopes up, but I can make a oneshot should it be requested. Make sure to either message me the specifics or drop a review. Cheers!**

 **Before I forget, I think that a picture for this story is really important, but I haven't been able to find one :/. If anybody could direct me to a picture or something that they think fits the story, that would be awesome!**

 **Again, sorry for letting the story down for so long, I really shouldn't have. Thank you for your continued support and I hope you enjoyed this! Have a pleasant-**

* * *

 _A slim, raven haired figure stepped into the darkened cave. Almost hesitantly, her deep crimson eyes opened and drank in the scene before her. Several animal carcasses around a long abandoned fire pit. She padded cautiously into the back of the cave. It was empty, all except the thin dusting of ice fragments. She turned back in frustration. It had taken her this long to track them to this cave. Najenda had given her the go ahead days before. As she swept her trench coat behind her, something snagged her attention. The ice chips._

 _The girl turned back and picked one up for examination. It was sharp, clearly defined. This ice had been broken away, through force. Had he resisted her? Another thought only deepened her suspicions. Surely this ice would have melted by now? The cave couldn't be all that cold in day. She scanned again. The skulls of the animals were shattered near their bones. Sheer force had killed them._

 _She stood, and walked to the exit of the cave. There she looked out along the vase expanse of forest, making out the snowy tree peaks breaking the green at the horizon._

 _'How typical of you. The Ice Queen heads for the cold.'_

 _She looked up at the night sky. "Tatsumi... I'm coming for you. Hold on."_

 _Akame slid down the slope and vanished between the thick shadows of the forest. She was on her way._

* * *

 **I had to slip in this little overdramatized nugget of a spoiler! Have a good day, and see you next chapter!**


	9. Ruined Madness

**Its been too long! Here we are again, happy 2017! Gosh it's been over a year since I last updated, but don't lose hope! I'm finding very little time to write, so I hope you can forgive me. I won't write some long AN, you deserve real content. So without further ado, I proudly present... Chapter 8 of there was always another way!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own any anime or manga, let alone this one. All I own is this story.**

'Kill the Boy! Now!' the tall man screeched, retreating back into the crowd of men as fast as he could, clutching his splintered arm. The Garrison was still for only a moment, before 70 swords drew from their sheaths. The Specter wielder grinned, silent as the wind, as he drew one long finger and pointed it at Tatsumi. Almost as if he was the one giving the orders, the Garrison charged Tatsumi disjointedly, confident in their strength in numbers.

Before even one of them could lay a sword upon him, snow swirled up around him as he whipped Incursio round and darted to the side. Not missing a beat, the Specter Wielder pointed his pale limb at the spot tatsumi landed. The men were instantly on him, and this time Tatsumi could not avoid their strike. The first 3 that got to him, found their sword strikes parried by a seemingly invisible steel blade, Tatsumi's eyes hidden beneath his bangs, face drawn tight with calm fury.

The first lost his leg, and as he fell was kicked into a tree nearby, impaled on a low hanging branch. The second man got himself gashed open, right through his armour, a deep wound that leaked his soul from his body. He was dead before he hit the ground. The third man was decapitated mere miliseconds after the second man was gouged open.

Tatsumi yanked the man's shield from his corpse as crimson flew through the air. One soldier keeled over and retched as the head landed at his feet. He fell moments later, a flurry of grey and black death slitting his throat. The stolen shield smacked into a soldier attacking from behind, knocking him over. A boot to the head kept him on the floor. A pike wielder made a futile thrust in the general direction of the rage filled boy, but in an instant he found himself disarmed and with a pike pole through his neck.

Tatsumi carved up another 5 men in mere instants, as the specter wielder's eyes grew wider, his fingers trembling as he pointed to tatsumi's direct location. He slowly backed away, long, thin fingers pushing more and more men forward. Finally Tatsumi looked up at him, and the two locked eyes. Not breaking contact, Tatsumi easily cleaved another 3 men, relieving them of their limbs.

Esdeath watched from her perch in a tree, eyes half lidded, panting. She was vaguely aware of a hiss in her mind, but the quiet hum of steel, muscles shifting like a well oiled machine, contrasting with the screams of dead men, blood spattering over the floor in jets of agony, they had her full attention. Tatsumi was furious. He was dominating, a weapon for killing all who stood against him. It was all she had ever wanted. She watched, hungry as a lone blade, legendary in its power, reached new heights of destruction and pain. Tatsumi stood in the middle of it all, not even shifting his feet, just parrying and cutting through flesh and bone like butter. He had his eyes locked onto the teigu user, challenging him to fight back. The man was _terrified._

Finally, the men's wills broke. Those yet to die, covered in their comrades blood, turned to flee the gore, flee inevitable death at the hand of a demon they failed to comprehend. As the general himself turned to run, Tatsumi parried with such force that a blade snapped off at the hilt. He spun in the air, foot darting out. The blade tip impaled the general through the back of the thigh, and right out the other side of the leg. Esdeath smiled cruelly. Without even a seconds thought, Tatsumi held his sword high, and uttered his first word of the battle. 'INNNCURSSIIOOOOO!' He roared. As if this had unsealed his lips, as smoke flew from his form and Incursio appeared to him, donning itself upon him, golden armour radiating deadly majesty from the sun, he spoke. 'You who dare abuse your power- power no longer yours, you who took from everyone with no second thought. You who tried to kill those I loved. Did they try to run? Did you spare them? You will die like the empire you served!'

Neuntote appeared, and with one swing and a dash, the remaining men collapsed in a pile of red.

On the ground, shaking, was the teigu wielder. Tatsumi stood above him, impassive. The man looked at him, terror flitting through his eyes, as if his fear itself would not face the golden demon. 'You' Tatsumi pointed Neuntote at him, the tip of the spear tickling his throat. The man gurgled in fear, an inhuman noise. For the first time, Tatsumi could see that the man was incapable of speech. He had no tongue. Suddenly, the figure began to flicker. Tatsumi knew what this was, and began to brace himself, but a most curious thing happened.

Instead of seeing what who he feared most, the figure would not settle. It warped and changed grotesquely. Features of Sayo, akame, and Mine spun together in a shifting mass, with no definable person. Beneath his helmet, Tatsumi grimaced, scowling. The figure flickered for a second, revealing the man beneath the disguise, before forming as a solid, definable figure. Tatsumi froze, for an instant. Then the mans head lolled on the floor, dead. Without missing a beat, Tatsumi turned to the fat general whimpered. 'Pl-please, I'll do whatever you want! I have gold, I can-' Tatsumi picked him up by the throat, dragging him to his own height. He held him there for a moment, then threw the man right through the nearest tree. Incursio vanished away from him, and the glow from Tatsumi's eyes faded as he looked at the bloodshed.

Esdeath appeared beside him. 'Tatsumi, that was magnificent! That was-' As she reached to embrace him, he stepped forward, and away from her reach.

He crouched in front of the man with Specter, and with a quick twist he pulled from the corpses head. The teigu immediately affected him, remembering him from the last time they had shared an encounter, causing him to feel shaky and unsteady. Tatsumi dropped the hateful teigu back on the corpse gingerly, before taking off his jacket and wrapping Specter up in it, careful not to allow skin contact between him and it.

"The damn thing probably hates me by now. I've killed two of its users consecutively." Tatsumi muttered to nobody in particular. Esdeath paced forward as Tatsumi rose, trying again to obtain his attention, to convey her pride and her want.

"Tatsumi! that was amazing! You have managed to grow stronger still, despite us constantly being on the move. You didn't even really need Incursio for that battle, and it makes me-" as she reached out to touch him he stood up, not looking at her. She grabbed his shirt "- only further convinced that you are the one for me. Tatsumi, Listen!" He stopped moving, and she took the opportunity to grab hold of him with both hands, gently.

The stench of blood still permeated the air as Esdeath wrapped her arms around the boy, face flushed. Her breath tickled his ear as she pressed herself to him. "Tatsumi... that show... I'm all wound up. Won't you spend some time with me?" In response, he placed a hand to her hip, and seeming tingles of electricity sparked from his touch, making her sigh.

Suddenly, he wormed from her grasp, and turned. A warm smile formed on his lips, and he patted her shoulder comfortingly, blissfully unaware as to what she was feeling, as thick as ever. "Thanks, Es. I couldn't let them hurt anyone I cared about. But..." His eyes grew cold, as she stood breathless. "I'm wondering if I went overboard. I didn't even give those men time to plead their cases. There was no justice in that."

She smiled fondly, eyes still pleading for his company. "There is no such need for justice. They were weak, they died. That is their place, in the ground where they belong."

Tatsumi moved his hand off. "I can't agree with that. I'm an assassin, not a soldier. I'm not supposed to fight on my feelings. Those men deserved trial." Esdeath rolled her eyes, and smiled in exasperation.

"No, Tatsumi, they didn't deserve a trial. They were weak, you were stronger, and so you chose their path, as it should be. The weak have no right to decide their destinies." She stated easily, as if it were obvious."

Tatsumi looked distasteful. "Esdeath, your morals are as skewed as ever. We had no evidence that all of them were willing to fight. I could have slaughtered someone innocent."

The Ice Queen frowned. "Again, with all this nonsense? Listen to me Tatsumi, the weak deserve everything that comes to them. They grow strong or they die, much like you. No man in the Empires army was guilty, Tatsumi. You can be sure of that. Now if we're quite done here, come with me." She tugged at his shirt gently. He didnt budge. Pulling harder, she began to snarl slightly. "Tatsumi, **come.** "

The boy scowled, and tore himself from her grasp. "No Esdeath, I have other things to attend to." He rose his hands slightly, gesturing to the teigu in them.

"Tatsumi..." Esdeath was still flushed with desire, but now it was mixed with a darkness, an anger. Why wasnt he listening? He stepped back, and turned away.

"We can talk later, for now I have to go deal with this Teigu." He began to pace off down the road, stepping over corpses, knowing full well that danger beasts would soon come to scavenge the corpses.

Esdeath stared after him in shock, her hands shaking. "Tatsumi, get back here! **Now!** " She commanded him, outraged. She made no move to go after him, he would come, she knew he would. He didnt turn, he just kept walking, further away. With each step, Esdeath grew more angry, more bitter. What had she done wrong? She had given him time, she had given him support, everything she had given him. Why was she not the most important thing in his life yet? Why?

"Tatsumi... please?" She begged, hoping he would prove her wrong and come running back. He paused for a moment, then raised a hand as if to say 'wait.' Then he padded round the corner, and out of view.

Esdeath snapped.

She crumpled into a herself, voices hissing and spitting in her ear. ' _How dare he? How dare he refuse you! Bring him back, drag him to us! Show him who he belongs to! Do it!'_ Esdeath pushed her fingers to her face, and as she did, her eyes slowly turned pitch black, the blue fading into the madness and hatred.

Suddenly she flew up, hands outspread and everything froze, jagged shards of icy pain flying in all directions, destroying everything they touched, the stench of blood still lying thick in the air. This was the first time Esdeath had ever lost control of teigu, her wild laughter carrying through the forest, ice not far behind.

 **Hours Later**

Tatsumi and the chief stepped from the chiefs hut, their long day of organising finally completed. Those who had died from the village were buried, and more importantly, Specter had been dealt with. It now sat upon the forehead of the chief, accepting him as its new user almost immediately. Tatsumi saw that the chief could wield it immensely well, and combined with his wisdom it would bring about a prosperous future for his town. However, Tatsumi was worried. Esdeath had not been seen since he left her in the forest, and he was beginning to worry.

With a little caution, he snuck out of the village when none were looking, and travelled back down the path to where he had left her. Rounding the corner, he froze. Everything, within a 20 metre band was nothing but sharpened icicles and blood. Nothing lived, nothing breathed. "Oh god... Esdeath!" Tatsumi looked around. Either side of the had been path, there was a ring cut in the trees. Tatsumi picked right, and sprinted down the pathway. He cared little for his balance on the ice, he was confident he could manage, however he was not prepared for the sharp spikes on the ground.

As he ran, he felt his shoes begin to tear and break apart, but he pushed on, fearful. What could make Esdeath react like that? What had happened to her? Blood began pouring from his feet, causing him to slide more, but he was growing desperate. "Esdeath! Es where are you!?" He received no reply. Not even a bird cried in response. Suddenly, there was a path. He looked about, confused. This did not make sense. There was only one path to his village, as far as he was aware...? Unless...? He looked aghast.

"A giant circle, pointing out the village... Why? Esdeath! Where are you?" A voice hissed into his ear.

" _I'm right **here** " _Tatsumi whirled, only to recieve a savage punch to the gut. He flew back, managing to grab ahold of an ice spike and right himself, eyes wide in astonishment. Esdeath stood before him, eyes completely black, darker than night, spread wide in madness.

Her smile was terrifying. It was full of rage, seething, oozing insanity. " _Why, do you suddenly care about me? Do you need me for something?"_

Icy horror clenched at Tatsumi's heart as she spoke. Her voice was inhuman, a hiss of contempt. "N-no. I came to make sure you were okay, I got worried and-" in an instant she was upon him. Her cold hands found his throat and lifted him clear into the air. He grabbed at her hand, desperate to pull her off. She wasn't choking him as such, which was a good sign.

" _Did you now, little Tatsumi? Spare a thought for poor old me? After relishing in the attention of that pathetic village of yours? How dare you? After all I've done for you, why won't you love me back the way I need?! I gave up everything, but you don't care!"_

She hurled him into the ground, causing him to cough up blood. Manacles of ice chained him to the floor, and her foot came down on his chest.

 _"You decide now Tatsumi. Me or them. Choose wisely. **Hagel Sprung!"**_

A massive ball of ice, more than Tatsumi had ever seen her create before, hovered 50 foot in the air. "Esdeath..." he realised her intention with horror.

" _That's right. I made myself a nice little bull's-eye. What's it going to be? Will you fight to defend them, or surrender to me, and give me what I deserve?"_

* * *

 **As the days turn to months, turn to years, we break and we crumble. Some may even fall, and the greatest superpower always has a weakness. Before your world comes crashing down, accept your fate but know in your aching heart- there was always another way.**

* * *

A/N: there we are. It's been a long time, hopefully worth the wait I really pushed to get this done today, although I guess that was yesterday now.

Question- do people want to see the scene where the elder gets his teigu? Up to you guys, I didn't see it as very interesting so I left it out.

Anyway, that's all for now, hopefully I'll be back before next year huh? Until next time, that's me out. thanks for reading!


	10. Thoughts of a darker kind

**Wew, its been a while. I picked up some extra time out of college, and Ive finally set aside writing time! Honestly, I'm planning to draw this story to a conclusion within the next few chapters, 2-3 more at most realistically. However I will pour as much of my creativity into those chapters as possible and deliver punctually to satisfy peoples need for closure in the story. I know how it feels to get to the good bit of a story and not have any more!**

 **Without further ado, I present the next chapter of There was always another way!**

 **Disclaimer- I dont own Akame Ga Kill, just the story here. This story is a non profit works.**

* * *

'thoughts'

 _recalled events_

 _"Esdeath's mad speech_

"Speech"

 **Emphasis**

* * *

 _"That's right. I made myself a nice little bulls eye. What's it going to be? Will you fight to defend them, or surrender to me, and give me what I deserve?"_

* * *

 _"This!" He pointed to her. "This is why I'm staying! This is why you don't need to worry anymore!" He went down onto his knees and forcefully turned her head towards him. "This girl that I see here is the reason I stay. So be yourself, act how you want, but don't worry about things. As long as you want me here, as long as you agree to my wishes too, I wont go anywhere!"_

 _"So carry on hurting me, let it all out... Just know that I'll always love you...Thank you for this... it lets me know...That you'll never be able to love me... or know how much I love you... You can go now."_

* * *

Why was he remembering things like that now? Those thoughts came from a sane Esdeath, not one currently pinning him down and threatening to crush his home with a huge chunk of ice!

Tatsumi was motionless as she stared down at him with those warped, dilated eyes. Tears trickled from his eyes and frosted up on his face as the seeping cold chilled his every pore. A shiver of undiluted fear wracked through him as Esdeath stood poised above him, as if waiting for him to leave an opening or reveal his intentions.

"Esdeath... please stop. I'm sorry." A snarl tore from her lips, and for a second her boot squeezed down on her throat. This second was all it took for Tatsumi's survival instinct to kick in. With adrenaline boosted strength, he shattered the ice pinning him and tried to knock her boot from his throat. She instantly jumped off and away from him, pushing him as she went. Such was her strength, he slid several meters back up and hit a tree, making it crack and groan under the strain.

 _"Liar! You aren't sorry, you never have been! You won't love me, you won't be mine through your own free will. I see through your pretty lies and false promises clearly now. If you will not give yourself to me, I will break everything you love in this world until there is nothing you can do but love me! I will be the only thing you can see, hear or touch, and then you will know how it feels to go through every day rejected by your whole world!"_

Tatsumi stared her in the eye as they stood off, the massive ball of ice frozen in the air above his village, trembling in indication of the levels of rage consuming Esdeath. Her eyes were madness to behold, warring, ravaging, burning into his soul as if it represented the insanity consuming her head.

Tatsumi crouched, drawing Incursio's key. What the hell could he do?

"Esdeath, do you remember the day I woke up from the capital? Where I lost my temper with you? Do you remember what you told me?"

* * *

 _"Do you understand now? It terrifies me. You terrify me. Before you I was sure of everything, I never once doubted myself. And now I can't stop. It's your fault, and I should hate you. But I can't. You... You are everything I want, and yet everything I fear all at the same time."_

* * *

Tatsumi shook his head. "Well?"

Her lips drew tight into a distorted smirk. _"Of course I do, and I was right. You could never love me the way I love you."_

Tatsumi looked closer into her eyes. There it was, mixed in with the ice and lunacy, a glint of fear.

"You were wrong." For a split second, a tremor shook her hand, and her blade twitched.

 _"More lies Tatsumi. You will not fool me this time."_

He raised Incursio up at her, accusingly. His aura of passion stoked the air and cut through her killing intent in almost visible waves.

"You're wrong. I know you Esdeath. I know you love to cuddle when you sleep, I know you love ice cream and the cold, I know how you like to feel loved and cared for, and I'm sorry that I haven't given you that. I was hoping... I hoped... I hoped we had more time than this. Time to go places and to do things together, so I could help you. I now know I've been doing it wrong."

The voice of Bulat, his brother, echoed in his head. 'Take responsibility for your actions Tatsumi! Show her your raging passion and your iron will that dominates the battlefield! Release everything you have and face her down with your overwhelming conviction! Do it... Incurs-'

 _"I will destroy any resistance you have left until all that remains is you and I!"_

She jumped high into the air, flipping back onto her icy ball that floated above his precious village, ready to throw it down into the earth.

Tatsumi's whirlwind of emotions boiled over and he screamed his passions into the air. " **INNNCCUUURRSIIOOOOO!"**

Esdeath snarled furiously as his armour clad form whirled through the air towards her. Neuntote spun into life in his fists as he charged towards her hagel sprung.

 _"I knew it Tatsumi, you would rather fight for them than love me!"_

She launched a grauhorn at him, to delay him, and kicked the ice ball towards the ground, intending to break her lovers spirit.

Instead of being hit by it, he spun his body sideways into the air, letting the tip whirl past him. Tatsumi managed an almost inhuman feat of acrobatics aligning himself along the spear by digging neuntote into the shaft and flipping himself into a righted position. Esdeath stared furiously as he ran along it at a breakneck pace, silent.

 _'so this is how it is, he wont even acknowledge me! **...You should break that armour of his open, and let your ice consume his soul. Force him to surrender and watch the light die from his eyes!'**_

Esdeath grinned, and launched the hagel sprung down towards the ground with a simple push off with her feet. Everything he knew and loved, consumed by her. It would be all his fault, he would finally understand her and need her in the way she deserved!

Then the impossible happened. It was blown off course, a white and red armoured figure using its staff to drive the massive ball away from the village below, knocking it far from its target and into the forest to the east of her.

 _"You think you can save them from me Tatsumi? You think you're so just and righteous, you think you know better than me and how I do things? I am the powerful, and I will show you!"_

A hissing in her ear soothed her rage and channeled it into her ice.

Immediately, She snapped her fingers, the harsh crack echoing out as she shouted for another Ice Ball.

Tatsumi was immediately engulfed by the shadow of a ball of ice bigger and darker than the last. Stuck in mid air as he and it fell, his mind whirled for options. As they plummeted, there was only one thing he could think of. Thrusting upwards, he stabbed at the ice ball with neuntote. He needed to pull himself closer to it in order for his plan to work. Time was short, they were falling fast.

Trying again, the incursio wielder drove his spear into the ice until neuntote stuck. Tatsumi could see the faces of the people below him fast approaching now, their terror evident as they tried to run from the ice that nearly smothered the sunlight. The armoured figure planted a foot on the ball, and launched himself in a spinning arc. The icy meteor cracked, and tatsumi heaved all his weight down, aided by gravity and his own immense strength. Neuntote shuddered and the ball cracked in two. Using this momentum to throw himself upwards, he kicked off of one of the halves and launched it out of the vicinity of the village. The propulsion barreled him into the second half, and he knocked that too.

 ** _'The boy refuses to stop trying, he wont bow in spirit... perhaps first you should break his body? Make him... humble again.'_** The sick whisper floated through Esdeath's warped mind, and she grinned again.

Tatsumi spun in the air, falling at speed with nothing to brace himself and nothing to direct himself from. He had dropped neuntote after shattering the second ball. He could try and evolve into the second evolution that he had faced the Supreme teigu with, but he wasnt sure how well it would go. Acting on pure adrenaline, he had been able to fly to save those people. This was different to that. This was Esdeath, he was sure he could...

 _"Tatsumiiii... wont you just give up already? Fine! I guess... we'll just have to break your body then your mind will follow willingly. Don't worry, nothing lethal!"_

At this point, the crazed ex-general had landed on the ground, the grass surrounding her feet frozen in erratic patterns as the power she emanated spiked and ebbed at random.

"Esdeath, please, you need to understand-"

 _"Nothing you say will make you right! HAGEL SPRUNG!"_

Tatsumi gaped. The the mass of solid cold was huge. The biggest he had ever seen her make. And it was plummeting towards him and his village. She stood there, not the gorgeous, playful, teasing Esdeath, but the crazed conqueror of the north, drunk on insanity and victory. This was it. He had to evolve, to use the next level of his power!

"I wont let you do this. I am strong enough to make you see! **INCURSIO! AGAIN!** " Instantly his Armour gleamed like a sudden sunrise, the golden sheen overriding the standard dull grey. Wings sprouted from his imperial arms and raw power surged through him like a tide of energy. He streaked up into the air, pushing against the ice with all his force. He only slowed it down. He pushed harder, forcing his wings to surge up, and he stopped moving entirely, a silent scream ripping through his body, his mask shattering revealing all the desperation and pain set into his face. Esdeath laughed manically.

 _"Do you now understand Tatsumi? Only the strong control the weak, not the other way around. You are weak, I control you. You were a fool to fight me."_

He snarled as his gloves cracked slightly under such weight, and lost an inch.

"You are wrong Esdeath! I was perfectly right to try and fight you! You Just can't understand why!"

She seethed and her power flared up, creating cold spikes at random. Launching into the air, the blue haired demon rose above her massive creation and whirlwind kicked down into it, a scream ripping from Tatsumi and making her tremble in appreciation.

He lost his grip and tumbled into the floor, the ball flying down too. All of the villagers, Tatsumi's childhood memories, flung themselves to the ground in hope of an extra second of life. The dull crash of death never came to them. Tatsumi was on his feet, wings snapped off and broken uselessly now. He stood like atlas holding up the world on his shoulders, and how heavy his burden was.

" **MOVE!"** He cried out as his muscles tore and ripped with protest.

 _"Stop trying to be a hero for them! They dont deserve your sympathy or your life! That belongs to me and me alone, like the rest of you! Why?! **WHY MUST YOU FIGHT ME?"**_ Esdeath bellowed out in frustration, punching into the ice, attempting to crush him.

The brown haired hero couldnt feel his body anymore. It was all numb, and he could barely keep it doing what it was, destroying his body. His voice grew small.

"You don't understand. You needed more time. I wanted to help you"

She ignored him and let the dark whispers comfort her nuisances.

"I thought you wanted to be with me not because you wanted to control me"

She pounded into the ice with both fists, causing it to crack under her force. Tatsumi's leg armour shattered, and his ankle snapped, forcing him onto one knee. Tears streamed down his face, not through his torn body, but because of what could have been.

"If you had allowed me this close, I thought you would want an equal. Someone to stand with you, to challenge you. That is why I wanted to fight you, to resist you. To prove I was strong enough."

Esdeath hesitated. _'what are you doing! Don't stop now, he's nearly yours, hes just delirious!'_ The whispers attempted to soothe her puzzled and twisted soul.

"You are wounded, you are hurt. Your pride has stopped you from confessing to yourself that you need help. You need me... that's why I cant let you beat me like this. You need me..."

She let out a groan of confusion as his words resonated within her. Her fists stopped punching the ice and pushed against her face in agony as her tearing thoughts lanced through her everything. What did he mean? What was he saying? Did he mean it?

"I thought that with time, I could love you and understand, but I needed you to be whole again to see who you are. I want to help you, I want to care, I want to be with you... I was stupid. I'm sorry." She shook, and as he crumpled under the weight of not ice, but failure, loneliness, and understanding, tears began to fall. For the first time in what felt like forever, the whispers stopped completely.

The ice cracked, and Esdeath hit the floor rolling. She caught her gentle, brown haired companion in her arms, no words able to force themselves through the hammering of her heart.

Tatsumi looked up to see an angel of death above him. Sorrow drowned her eyes. "Why?"

His hand reached up to touch her face. It came away wet. "We cant all be as strong as you, can we?"

His world went black.

* * *

 **Words, ordered, categorised, orthodox. When rules are broken, the ripples create waves that change our very beings. Words, the catalyst for the way in which the coin of life flips. You must know by now... there was always another way.**

* * *

 **AN: How was that? Its been a while, I'm a little rusty. I literally wrote this all up today to get it out. Its 1am right now. As I said, two to three more chapters now, and the next one will likely be very Akame orientated, with a possible change in style for that chapter only. It will of course still feature our favourite pairing. How will Tatsumi be? What will Esdeath have to say for herself? Nearly killing him wasnt all that cool, and the secrets out on her mild insanity problem.**

 **By the way, if the ending of this chapter seems familiar, I stole it from the start, I wanted it to replicate that feeling, to show how far they have come by the next chapter.**

 **In terms of timescale, I'm only really pointing out relevant parts of their story. Its been much longer than I alluded, several weeks if not a month. I noticed that error in my writing but regrettably I cant go back and rewrite it, it would kill me.**

 **I think the story is developing quite nicely! See you in the next one very soon!**

 **Edited for grammar and clarity: 27/05/17**


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